THE  LIBRARY 

OF 

THE  UNIVERSITY 

OF  CALIFORNIA 

LOS  ANGELES 


THE 


LILY  AMONG  THORNS 


A  STUDY  OF  THE  BIBLICAL   DRAMA 


ENTITLED 


THE   SONG  OF   SONGS 


BY 


WILLIAM  ELLIOT  GRIFFIS,  D.  D. 

PASTOR  OF  THE   SHAWMUT   CONGREGATIONAL  CHURCH,    BOSTON,   MASS. 
AND   AUTHOR   OF   "  THE   MIKADO's   EMPIRE  " 


BOSTON    AND    NEW    YORK 
HOUGHTON,  MIFFLIN   AND   COMPANY 

1890 


Copyright,  i88g, 
By  WILLIAM  ELLIOT  GRIFFIS. 

All  rights  reserved. 


The  Riverside  Press,  Cambridge,  Mass.,  U.  S.  A. 
Electrotyped  and  Printed  by  H.  O.  Houghton  &  Company. 


l4SS 


J 


To 

KATHARINE   LYRA 

MAIDEN  BELOVED 
WIFE  CHERISHED 
MOTHER   HONORED 

(SLW  .§>tub|0 

OF  A   FAIR    PAGE    IN    OUR    HEAVENLY   FATHER'S    BOOK, 

COMPLETED    IN   JUNE,   THE    MONTH    OF 

VISION,   RING,   AND   ALTAR 

/S  LOVINGLY  DEDICATED 


PREFACE. 


The  fruits  of  a  century  of  critical  study  of  He- 
brew are  now  within  reach  of  all.  Three  gener- 
ations of  reverent  students  of  text,  rather  than  of 
tradition,  have  revealed  the  Bible  as  literature. 
The  remarkable  agreement  in  theory  and  result 
reached,  and  the  total  wealth  of  old  truths  re-dis- 
covered, are  equally  causes  of  gratitude.  The  anal- 
ogy in  the  natural  world  has  been  the  collateral 
progress  in  geology  and  the  location  of  earth's  un- 
used treasures  in  old  and  new  lands.  As  the  miner 
is  first  to  profit  by  the  studies  of  the  geologist,  so 
the  first  to  utilize  the  researches  of  orientalists 
should  be  ministers  who  are  pastors  and  teachers 
of  the  Word  of  God. 

No  book  of  the  Bible  has  been  so  inaccessible 
to  the  ordinary  reader,  none  so  walled  about, 
matted  over,  and  hidden  by  tradition,  as  the  Song 
of  Songs.  This  Thornrose  castle  of  the  Hebrew 
world  has  stood  for  centuries  like  some  battle- 
mented  tower  mantled  with  rank  growths  of  ivy 
and  all  wild  vines.  Its  external  form  has  prompted 
to  innumerable  conjectures  as  to  what  was  within. 

The  great  Hebraists  of  our  century,  like  the 
prince  in  Teutonic  storj',  have  not  contented  them- 
selves   with   beholding   the    outside.      Penetrating 


VI  PREFACE. 

within,  they  have  been  charmed  with  a  beauty  be- 
fore unsuspected.  Instead  of  the  garish  prismatics 
shed  by  allegories,  they  have  enjoyed  in  white  light 
a  loveliness  that  is  ancient,  intrinsic,  and  real. 
They  read  in  the  Song  of  Songs  a  stainlessly 
chaste  love-poem,  the  epic  of  a  woman's  purity,  a 
satire  on  polygamy,  lofty  ethical  teachings,  and  a 
spiritual  doctrine  taught  in  dramatic  form.  They 
find  the  complement  to  the  other  writings  of  the 
Jehovah-religion,  which  needs  no  artificial  and  far- 
fetched system  of  interpretation  ;  for  good  doctrine 
needs  no  allegory. 

In  the  company  of  such  explorers  of  Israel's  his- 
tory and  Bible  truth  as  Herder,  Eichhorn,  Umbreit, 
Ewald,  Ginsburg,  Godet,  Cheyne,  Farrar,  Smith, 
Briggs,  and  Daland,  and  indeed  the  majority  of 
modern  scholars,  no  pastor  of  a  Christian  church 
need  be  ashamed  to  stand.  Yet,  until  the  appear- 
ance of  the  Revised  Version  of  1884,  which  de- 
capitated the  chapters  in  the  English  version  of 
their  impertinent  headings,  and  showed  the  poetic 
and  dramatic  structure  of  the  Song  of  Songs,  the 
preacher  who  discarded  allegory  seemed  audacious, 
if  not  heretical.  The  version  of  1884  removes 
danger  and  direful  novelty,  and  helps  grandly  the 
student,  expositor,  and  ordinary  reader. 

The  study  of  this  book  having  been  very  helpful 
to  my  own  soul,  I  herein  endeavor  to  impart  freely 
the  blessing  enjoyed.  I  have  repressed  most  of 
the  homiletical  matter  used  in  the  two  courses  of 
sermons,  preached  in  Schenectady  (1884)  and  Bos- 


PREFACE.  Vll 

ton  (1889),  and  have  been  content  to  furnish  what 
is,  in  the  main,  a  literary  study  of  this,  probably, 
the  most  perfect  poem  in  any  language.  The 
thronging  illustrations  which  have  come  to  me 
from  biblical,  far- oriental,  and  other  literature 
have  been  but  sparingly  used,  in  order  that  the 
work  might  be  as  modest  in  size  as  it  is  slender  in 
scholarship. 

It  is  no  work  of  learning  or  research  which  is 
here  submitted  to  cold  type,  but  only  the  studies  of 
one  who  enjoys  the  Bible  as  literature  as  well  as 
revelation.  The  key  to  this  particular  treasure- 
chamber  of  Holy  Scripture  has  been  furnished  me 
by  the  great  Hebraists.  An  earnest  study  of  De- 
litzsch  completed  my  emancipation  from  the  alle- 
gorical theory.  Fascinated  by  the  riches  before  me, 
I  cast  away  the  commentaries,  and  gave  the  spare 
hours  of  my  days  and  nights  to  the  original  text 
and  the  ancient  versions.  These,  to  the  sympa- 
thetic student,  outweigh  in  value  the  mountains  of 
commentary  built  upon  them. 

It  remains  to  speak  gratefully  of  all  those  teach- 
ers, friends,  and  associates  who  have  helped  me  to 
enjoy  and  appreciate  the  riches  of  the  Old  Testa- 
ment. First  in  honor,  I  name  my  instructors  at 
New  Brunswick,  N.  J.  :  the  venerable  ex-President 
of  Rutgers  College,  Rev.  William  H.  Campbell, 
D.  D.,  LL.  D.,  from  whom  I  learned  the  rudiments 
of  critical  biblical  study  ;  and  the  Rev.  John  De 
Witt,  D.  D.,  professor  of  Hebrew  at  New  Bruns- 
wick, N.  J.,  whose  "  Praise  Songs  of  Israel  "  is,  in 


Viii  PREFACE. 

my  view,  the  best  rendering  into  the  English  lan- 
guage of  the  Psalms.  To  my  former  parishioner, 
the  late  Tayler  Lewis,  LL.  D.,  whose  writings  are 
ever  stimulating  and  helpful ;  to  Professor  Charles 
A.  Briggs,  D.  D.,  of  Union  Theological  Seminary, 
whose  lectures  on  Hebrew  Literature  so  enriched 
my  mind  and  heart ;  to  Rev.  William  C.  Daland, 
a  fellow-alumnus  of  Union  Seminary,  whose  valu- 
able monograph  on  the  Song  of  Songs  (Leonards- 
villa,  N.  Y.,  1888)  is  so  full  of  fine  scholarship  and 
rich  suggestion  ;  to  Rev.  S.  M.  Jackson,  editor  of 
the  "  Concise  Dictionary  of  Religious  Knowledge," 
who  kept  me  informed  as  to  the  latest  bibliography 
of  the  subject ;  and  to  Messrs.  M.  F.  Dickinson, 
Jr.,  Charles  H.  Allen,  and  S.  T.  Snow,  of  Boston, 
for  special  interest  in  the  publication  of  this  little 
book,  I  return  my  sincere  and  hearty  thanks.  In 
the  two  congregations  I  have  had  the  honor  to 
serve  nave  been  many  men  and  women  who  have 
been  heartily  appreciative  of  every  endeavor  of 
their  pastor  to  unfold  to  them  the  riches  of  the 
Bible  ;  their  kind  words   I  gratefully  remember. 

Above  all,  thanks  to  the  Heavenly  Father  for 
the  health  and  strength  enjoyed  during  the  delight- 
ful study  of  the  fair  page  of  inspiration,  of  which 
this  little  book  is  an  unworthy  exposition. 

In  His  Name,  it  is  sent  forth. 

W.  E.  G. 

Saturday  Evening, 
November  2,  i88g. 


CONTENTS. 


-•- 


PART  I. 

History  and  Criticism. 

CHAPTER   I. 
Theory  and  Interpretation      ii 

CHAPTER  II. 
Life  and  Times  of  King  Solomon 27 

CHAPTER   III. 

Historic  Characters  in  the  Poem 46 

CHAPTER  IV. 
Poetic  Background  of  the  Canticle 64 

CHAPTER  V. 
Dramatic  Structure  of  the  Song  of  Songs     .    .    83 

CHAPTER  VI. 
History  of  the  Book  itself 106 

PART   II. 
The  Text  in  the  Revised  Version  .     .     .     .129 


X  I  CONTENTS. 

PART    III. 
Studies  and  Comments. 

Act  I.,  Scene  I.     The  Vineyard  Girl    in    the 

King's  Harem.    Chapter  I.  i-8 152 

Act  I.,  Scene  II.   The  Lily  among  Thorns.    Chap- 
ter I.  8-II   7 162 

Act  II.,  Scene   I.     The  Dove   in   the  Cleft  of 

the  Rocks.    Chapter  II.  8-17       174 

Act    II.,  Scene    II.     In    Dream-Land.     Chapter 

III.  i-s       182 

Act  III.,  Scene  I.    The  Royal  Procession.    Ch.a.p- 

TER  III.  6-11 190 

Act  III.,  Scene  II.    Loye-Making  in  the  Pal.'vce. 

Ch.\pter  IV.  1-5,  7 199 

Act    III.,  Scene    III.     The    Garden    of    Spices. 

Chapter  IV.  8-V.  i 208 

Act  III.,  Scene  IV.    The  Waking  Heart.    Chap- 
ter V.  2-S 216 

Act  IV.,  Scene  I.    The  Beloved  and  his  Ch.\rms. 

Chaptf.r  V.  9-VI.  3 223 

Act  IV.,  Scene  II.    Compared  with  Princesses. 

Chapter  VI.  4-10      229 

Act  IV.,  Scene  III.    The  Dance  of  M.\hanaim 

Chapter  VII.  1-7 236 

Act  IV.,  Scene  IV.    The  Impregnable  Fortress. 

Chapter  VII.  8-VIII.  4 248 

Act  v..  Scene  I.     The    Union  of  the  Lo\t:rs. 

Chapter  VIII.  5-7 256 

Act  v.,  Scene  H.    The  Virgin  Fortress  .\nd  the 

Vineyards.    Chapter  VIII.  8-14 264 


THE   LILY   AMONG   THORNS. 
PART  I. 

HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 


CHAPTER   I. 

THEORY   AND    INTERPRETATION. 

"  No  man  also  having  drunk  old  wine, 
straightway  desireth  new,  for  he  saith,  The 
old  is  better."  In  the  study  of  the  master- 
pieces of  art,  in  painting,  poetry,  and  architec- 
ture, the  old  work  of  master  hands  seems  to 
the  purged  eye  of  the  student  more  august 
and  lovely  than  the  more  recent  productions 
which  imitate  or  cover  up  the  old.  The  works 
of  the  golden  age  are  better  than  the  weaker 
or  more  garish  fabrics  of  debased  taste.  Even 
when  the  earlier  poem,  picture,  statue,  or  fa- 
cade seems  simple,  nay  plain,  it  may  have  to 
the  eye  of  the  critic  a  richer  beauty  than  the 
more  florid  work  of  later  days  when  taste  was 
less  severe,  or  originality  had  run  out.     When, 


12  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

under  a  cheap  oil  painting  of  a  local  artist  of 
untrained  powers,  one  discovers  on  the  scraped 
canvas  a  head  of  the  virgin  by  Raphael  or 
Correggio,  or  back  of  the  diluted  lines  of  a 
plagiarist  one  recalls  the  simpler,  grander 
verse  of  Milton  or  Herrick,  or  from  a  white- 
washed renovation  there  is  revealed  a  superb 
carving,  who  does  not  prefer  the  original  to  its 
copy  ? 

If  underneath  some  monkish  or  popish  le- 
gend written  on  parchment  there  be  brought  to 
resurrection  a  Codex  of  St.  Matthew  or  a  for- 
gotten fragment  of  the  New  Testament,  who 
would  not  have  rather  the  simple  Scripture 
than  all  the  lying  lives  of  the  saints,  or  the 
priests'  rubbish  about  winking  virgins  or  dried 
blood  turning  to  liquid  again  ?  In  art,  in  ar- 
chitecture, in  religion,  give  us  the  original,  the 
strong,  the  best,  the  true. 

If  you  wish  a  photograph  to  flatter  your 
vanity,  to  conceal  your  age,  to  compete  with 
actresses  and  professional  beauties,  then  bid 
the  artist  soften  the  lines,  erase  all  the  wrin- 
kles, touch  up  and  tone  down  the  negative,  un- 
til the  printed  picture  shall  be  a  fancy  portrait 
of  nobody  in  particular,  and  of  yourself  only 
in  a  shadowy  sense.  But  do  you  want  truth, 
character,  life,  manliness,  a  face  on  which  his- 
tory and  experience  are  graven  ?    Then  let  the 


THEORY  AND  INTERPRETATION.         1 3 

photograph  be  but  slightly  touched.  As  Oliver 
Cromwell  did,  put  the  wart  in,  and  let  the 
rugged  lines  remain.  Fleeting  taste  or  tem- 
porary fashion  changes  the  face,  the  figure, 
the  dress.  So  let  it  be  in  dry  goods,  groceries, 
drugs,  and  show-case  pictures  ;  but  from  truth, 
especially  truth  in  the  Word  of  God,  keep  off 
the  improver's  touches  from  the  negative. 
Away  with  dye  and  wigs  and  crimps  from  the 
hair,  paint  from  the  cheek,  patches  from  the 
face,  pads  and  shams  from  the  limbs,  and  let 
us  see  God's  daughter.  Truth,  as  she  is,  beau- 
tiful in  her  simplicity,  and  "when  unadorned, 
adorned  the  most."  The  perfectly  beautiful 
needs  no  adorning. 

In  such  a  spirit,  let  us  study  that  portion  of 
our  Heavenly  Father's  book  which  treats  of 
human  love,  "  Solomon's  Song,"  so-called,  or, 
as  its  own  title  is,  "The  Song  of  Songs."  We 
believe  in  the  ancient,  and  not  the  modern 
interpretation  of  it,  and  shall  study  it  as  an 
untouched  picture,  as  an  ancient  work.  Peo- 
ple have  made  out  of  it  a  stumbling-block, 
have  been  scandalized  even  at  its  being  in  the 
Holy  Bible.  Some  read  it  as  bare  prose,  as 
though  it  were  a  newspaper  column.  Others 
take  it  in  fragments,  without  beginning,  devel- 
opment, or  end,  and  all  as  literally  as  if  it  were 
a  grocer's  bill  or  a  landlord's  receipt.     Others 


14  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

again  make  it,  even  to  every  word  and  detail, 
an  allegory  of  Christ  and  the  church ;  and, 
following  the  chapter  headings  of  the  unre- 
vised  version,  read  into  it  a  thousand  ideas 
and  conceits  foreign  to  the  mind  of  the  writer ; 
while  some  kindle  the  flames  of  lust  with  fire 
sent  down  from  heaven  ! 

Christian  people  look  askance  at  this  book, 
because  as  the  commentator,  Matthew  Henry, 
intimates,  with  more  or  less  truth,  it  is  so 
unlike  the  other  books  in  the  Old  or  New  Tes- 
tament ;  the  name  of  God  is  not  found  in  it  ; 
it  is  never  quoted  by  Christ  or  the  apostles  ; 
we  do  not  find  in  it  any  expressions  of  natural 
religion  or  pious  devotion  ;  nor  is  there  in  it 
any  vision,  miracle,  or  mark  of  immediate  in- 
spiration ;  and,  finally,  it  is  a  flower  from 
which  those  with  carnal  minds  and  corrupt 
affections  are  likely  to  extract  poison. 

Some  of  the  statements  which  we  have 
condensed  are  true,  some  not.  The  Song  of 
Songs  is  not,  indeed,  spoken  of  nor  quoted  in 
the  New  Testament,  but  it  is  full  of  religion, 
exalted  sentiment,  chaste  and  pure  ideas.  The 
poem  is  suffused  with  ethical  teaching  of  the 
best  kind,  enforcing  an  example  for  us  to  fol- 
low. To  crown  all,  the  name  of  God  is  in  it, 
and  linked  to  the  master  passion  which  is  the 
burden  of  the  song.     We  propose  to  extract 


THEORY  AND  INTERPRETATION.         1 5 

honey  and  not  poison  from  this  Shemitic 
flower.  This  book  should  be  expounded  by- 
Christian  ministers  in  order  to  vindicate  its 
pure  character,  and  in  expository  discourse  to 
unfold  "  the  whole  counsel  of  God "  as  com- 
prised in  the  Bible,  which  enshrines  the  Word 
of  God  to  man,  and  which  is  not  to  be  neg- 
lected in  any  part. 

When  the  science  of  biblical  criticism  was 
in  its  infancy,  and  the  large  mass  of  unchal- 
lenged tradition  inherited  from  the  rabbis 
still  burdened  the  Christian  church,  such 
statements  as  those  of  Matthew  Henry  could 
be  written  and  accepted  ;  and  this,  notwith- 
standing such  assertions  bring  as  much  odium 
upon  the  Bible  as  the  sneers  of  infidels  and 
the  destructive  criticisms  of  Renan,  who,  with 
all  his  learning,  is  the  chief  vulgarizer  of  holy 
things. 

As  matter  of  fact,  The  Song  of  Songs  is 
the  completion,  the  crowning  work  of  inspired 
Hebrew  wisdom.  We  find  in  the  centre  of 
the  English  Old  Testament,  the  part  usually 
called  the  Poetical,  which  is  the  third  of  the 
four  great  divisions  of  Law,  History,  Poetry, 
and  Prophecy,  a  collection  of  five  books  which 
may  be  called  the  Code  of  Wisdom.  These 
five  books.  Job,  Psalms,  Proverbs,  Ecclesiastes, 
and  the  Song  of  Songs,  do  not  treat  of  events. 


1 6  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

laws,  chronicles,  and  regulations,  of  concrete 
history  or  of  prophecy,  but  of  the  conduct  of 
life.  Their  purpose  is  didactic  and  stimulating 
to  all  who  would  "set  righteousness  in  the 
earth."  They  are  characterized  by  the  word 
chokma,  meaning  wisdom.  They  have  the 
form  of  dialogue,  drama,  lyrics,  apothegms, 
soliloquy  and  cantata,  or  drama.  They  are 
nearest  to  our  idea  of  pure  literature,  the  liter- 
ature of  power,  rather  than  the  literature  of 
knowledge.  With  this  group  of  poetical  books 
we  naturally  associate  Ruth  and  Lamentations, 
for  these  also  treat  of  the  right  way  to  live,  as 
well  as  to  believe  and  worship. 

The  authors  of  the  book  of  Job  would  teach 
us  how  "to  suffer  and  be  strong;"  the  Psalm- 
ists how  to  pray  and  praise ;  the  Proverbists, 
inculcating  wisdom  and  discipline,  how,  under 
all  circumstances,  to  do  the  square  thing,  ac- 
cording to  the  plumb  line  of  the  eternities  ;  the 
Preacher  how  to  enjoy  aright  the  good  things 
of  God  ;  while  the  poet  of  the  Canticle  shows 
us  how  to  love. 

Surely  this  divine  art  is  a  most  vital  matter. 
Since  God  is  love,  we  are  not  to  love  apart 
from  Him,  nor  allow  our  affections  to  twine 
hopelessly  around  what  will  separate  us  from 
Him.  We  are  even  in  our  earthly  loves  to 
remain  unshakably  loyal  to  our  God.     Surely 


THEORY  AND  INTERPRETATION.         1/ 

in  our  Heavenly  Father's  Book  may  we  not, 
on  some  pages,  learn  the  supreme  art  of  true 
and  pure  love  ? 

It  is  our  belief  that  we  may  thus  learn  from 
one  who,  amid  all  that  is  most  tempting  to  a 
woman,  remains  at  once  immutably  faithful 
to  Jehovah  and  to  the  man  to  whom  she 
plighted  her  troth  in  humble  life.  Our  model 
and  exemplar  is  this  heroine  in  the  Song  of 
Songs.  As  Job  was  tried  in  the  things  most 
tempting  to  the  mind  of  man  and  learned  to 
suffer  nobly,  as  Joseph  —  "  the  pure  moon  of 
Canaan,"  as  the  Persians  call  him  —  was 
tempted  as  to  the  flesh,  and  resisting  gladly 
endured  unjust  imprisonment,  so  the  Shula- 
mite,  "faithful  found  among  the  faithless," 
came  out  unscathed  from  those  allurements 
which  offered  most  to  a  young  girl.  In  one 
sense,  Joseph,  Job,  and  the  Shulamite  were 
types  of  Him  who  loved  to  contrast  the  lily 
and  Solomon,  and  who  in  the  desert  foiled  the 
tempter  who  assaulted  the  flesh,  the  intellect, 
and  the  soul  of  the  Son  of  Man  in  vain. 

We  read  in  this  book  the  handwriting  of 
God  affixing  his  signature  of  reprobation  upon 
the  sins  of  Solomon,  and  upon  all  human  lust. 
We  behold  in  the  very  heart  of  the  Bible  a 
pure  shrine  of  affection  on  which  God  has  set 
his  own  seal  and  name. 


1 8  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

People  are  not  to  blame  if  they  read  the 
book  wrongly,  when  it  has  never  been  ex- 
plained to  them.  Once  understood  properly, 
all  objections  against  it  fall  to  the  ground.  If 
interpreted  according  to  the  popular  idea, 
that  the  Canticle  was  written  by  Solomon,  and 
that  in  it  he  represents  himself  as  a  lover  and 
bridegroom,  then  the  book  is  an  indorsement 
of  polygamy,  or  at  least  does  not  rebuke  it. 
Whereas  we  hold  that  the  Canticle  is  an  im- 
plicit condemnation  of  the  polygamous  old 
king,  and  a  psean  in  praise  of  virtue  and  the 
love  of  one  man  to  one  woman. 

We  believe  of  this  book  what  is  said  of  all 
the  Bible :  "  Every  scripture  inspired  of  God 
is  also  profitable  for  teaching,  for  reproof,  for 
correction,  for  instruction  which  is  in  right- 
eousness :  that  the  man  of  God  may  be  com- 
plete, furnished  completely  unto  every  good 
work." 

Perhaps  we  may  find  that  this  exquisite 
love-poem  furnishes  us  to  one  particular  good 
work  such  as  no  other  book  in  the  Bible  does. 
The  right  understanding  of  it  makes  the  Old 
Testament  complete.  The  book  of  Proverbs 
gives  us  in  precept  the  image  of  "  a  perfect 
woman  nobly  planned,"  the  Song  of  Songs 
gives  her  in  example.  This  is  the  Bible 
method,  to  unite  history  and  philosophy. 


THEORY  AND  INTERPRETATION.         1 9 

The  theory  of  interpretation  upon  which  we 
proceed,  and  which  we  hold  is  the  ancient  one, 
is  that  the  Canticle  is  a  cantata  or  series  of 
songs  making  a  dramatic  unity,  celebrating 
the  triumph  of  virtue  over  temptation,  and 
illustrating  the  contrast  between  virtuous  and 
sensual  love,  praising  the  former  and  stigma- 
tizing the  latter.  With  the  almost  overwhelm- 
ing majority  of  modern  critical  scholars,  we 
think  that  Solomon  is  not  the  author  of  it,  but 
that  it  was  composed  after  his  death,  probably 
by  an  Ephraimite  or  northern  poet  who  de- 
scribes, in  character  sketches,  the  ladies  of 
the  royal  harem  in  Jerusalem,  and  a  beautiful 
maiden  from  the  North,  a  simple,  rustic  girl 
from  the  vineyards,  a  Shulamite.  The  poem 
contrasts  the  pure  simplicity  of  Galilean  coun- 
try life  with  the  corrupt  splendor  of  the  court 
of  Solomon. 

The  king  tries  to  win  the  maiden's  love,  and 
to  place  her  in  his  harem,  with  the  other 
court  ladies  or,  as  they  are  called,  "  daughters 
of  Jerusalem." 

The  chief  speakers  in  this  cantata  are  Sol- 
omon, the  Shulamite,  her  "beloved"  {dod) 
who  is  a  shepherd,  and  the  court  ladies.  The 
Shulamite  is  betrothed  to  a  young  mountain- 
eer of  her  country,  and  remains  faithful  to  him 
while  away  from  her  home.     Notwithstanding 


20  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

all  the  blandishments  of  King  Solomon,  the 
glittering  allurements  of  palace,  city,  and 
court  life,  and  of  wealth,  fame,  and  dazzling 
glory,  even  the  offer  of  queenship,  she  re- 
mains unflinchingly  loyal  to  her  beloved. 
Twenty-five  times  is  he  addressed  or  referred 
to  in  the  poem. 

The  court  ladies  second  Solomon's  efforts, 
either  by  banter  or  jeers  ;  but  this  country 
lass,  this  wild  flower  of  Sharon,  this  lily  among 
thorns,  ever  remembers  her  lover.  She  falls 
into  reminiscence,  longing,  and  home  -  sick- 
ness, and  though  polite  and  obedient  to  royal 
behests,  chngs  to  her  betrothed  faithfully, 
remaining  chaste,  pure,  undazzled  and  un- 
bought,  crying  out  in  every  temptation,  "  my 
beloved  is  mine,  and  I  am  his,"  and  in  every 
victory,  "  I  adjure  you,  O  daughters  of  Jeru- 
salem, by  the  roes  and  by  the  hinds  of  the 
field,  that  ye  stir  not  up  nor  awaken  love 
{ahabah),  until  it  please."  That  love  must  rise 
spontaneously,  and  be  true,  is  the  supreme 
lesson  of  this  divinely  inspired  drama. 

Finally,  at  the  end  of  the  long  trial,  having 
won  the  victory,  she  cries  out  in  exultant 
song,  "  Love  {ahabah)  is  as  strong  as  death, 
its  intensest  passion  unyielding  as  Sheol,  the 
coals  thereof  are  as  outflashing  fire,  a  light- 
ning  of   the    Eternal.     Many    waters   cannot 


THEORY  AND  INTERPRETATION.        21 

quench  love  {ahabah)  nor  the  floods  drown  it, 
and  if  a  man  [Solomon]  were  to  give  all  the 
substance  of  his  house  for  my  love,  it  would 
utterly  be  contemned." 

With  this  radiant  apex  of  victory  to  virtue, 
and  a  crown  to  constancy,  the  nature  of  the 
eternal  romance  of  true  love  is  set  forth,  its 
seat  and  birthplace  in  the  bosom  of  God,  who 
ordains  one  man  to  love  one  woman  in  holy 
wedlock,  and  abhors  lust,  polygamy,  and  all 
unfaithfulness. 

This  interpretation,  founded  not  on  uncer- 
tain tradition,  and  on  far-fetched  allegory 
which  the  Bible  gives  no  hint  of,  is  based  on 
the  readuig  and  scrutiny  of  the  language  of 
the  book  itself,  the  background  of  history  as 
given  in  the  Bible,  and  the  study  of  the  great 
Hebraists  of  this,  the  greatest  century  of 
Shemitic  learning. 

As  the  ancient  painting  of  the  master- 
artist  found  on  the  wall  under  the  whitewash, 
or  the  true  scripture  text  beneath  a  palimp- 
sest, or  a  genuine  antique  fragment  rather 
than  a  tinkered  classic  statue,  or  an  un- 
touched photograph  instead  of  a  smoothed- 
off  negative  from  which  all  individuality  has 
been  eliminated,  are  preferred  to  their  copies, 
so  we  prefer  the  simple  narrative  of  this  an- 
cient poem,  without  the  allegories  discovered 


22  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

in  it  in  later  times.  We  believe  the  literal 
interpretation,  simpler,  truer,  more  biblical 
and  more  helpful  for  this  life  of  ours.  There 
is  not  a  more  chastely  moral  book  in  the  whole 
Bible  than  this  Song  of  Songs,  nor  one  whose 
tone  and  example  are  more  befitting  our  day 
and  country,  nor  one  that  sweeps  with  more 
bracing  atmosphere,  or  searches  with  more 
purifying  gales  the  plague  spots  and  malaria 
in  our  own  social  life.  The  purest  maiden 
may  read  it  without  danger  to  mind  or  heart, 
for  it  is  as  pure  as  guileless  maidenhood  itself. 
To  the  heavenly  simplicity  of  its  teachings, 
and  to  its  detailed  pictures,  its  music,  and 
scenery  and  poetry,  let  us  hie  in  company, 
thankful  to  God  for  so  beautiful  and  inspired 
a  poem.  We  believe  it  speaks  to  us  with  the 
sanction  of  inspiration. 

Some  may  not  accept  the  interpretation 
herein  set  forth  by  modern  scholars  because 
they  deem  it  too  commonplace  for  Holy  Scrip- 
ture. Others  will  prefer  the  mediaeval  view 
because  it  is  somewhat  old,  albeit  there  is  not 
a  scintilla  of  Bible  proof,  or  even  evidence  in 
its  behalf.  Others  will  judge  that  we  have 
degraded  Solomon,  and  spoken  too  lightly  of 
one  who  in  certain  points  was  a  type  of  Christ, 
an  inspired  writer,  who  according  to  late  Jew- 
ish tradition  was   the  author  of  certain  books 


THEORY  AND   INTERPRETATION.         23 

of  the   Bible,  and  who  was  a  wise,  dignified, 
and  learned  judge,  law-giver,  and    king.     To 
save  his  reputation,  many  will  prefer  to  read 
into  Canticles  the  fanciful  notions  of  the  Tal- 
mudists  and  writers  of  the  Apocrypha.     Oth- 
ers  prefer   to   shun  or    prohibit  the  book   as 
something  dangerous  for  young  people,  and  at 
the  best   a   scandalous    and    suspicious   book, 
that  is  found  among  the  Holy  Scriptures,  very 
much    as    Saul    was    discovered    among    the 
prophets,  or    Satan  among    the  sons   of  God. 
Some  orthodox  Christians,  who  hold  the  the- 
ory of  interpretation  not  taught  in  the  Bible, 
but    thought    necessary   and    God -honoring, 
would,  if  they  could,  keep  "  Solomon's  Song  " 
under  lock   and  key,  or  surround   it  with  the 
barbed  wire  of  prohibition  until  adult  age  be 
reached.     This  was  the  course  advised  by  the 
rabbis,  who  advised  young  men  not  to  read  it 
until  thirty  years  of  age.     Yet  even  the  good 
people    who    deprecate    its    perusal    by    the 
young  must  remember  that  the  rabbis  forbade 
it  to  immature  readers,    not   because    of  any 
supposable  harm  to   their  morals,  but   rather 
lest  they  should  not  understand  it  correctly  ; 
i.  e.,  according  to  their  particular  and  tempo- 
rary orthodoxy. 

It  is    remarkable,   also,  that    the   Turks  at 
Constantinople,  whose  custom-house  is  under 


24  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

the  shadow  of  the  sultan's  harem,  refused  to 
admit  certain  books  imported  by  the  Amer- 
ican Tract  Society.  Why  ?  Because  these 
books  from  Christian  America  —  Christian 
except  in  Utah  —  contained  criticisms  upon 
Solomon,  whose  polygamous  example  the  Mo- 
hammedans as  well  as  our  Mormons  follow  to 
this  day.  This  the  Turks  did,  notwithstanding 
there  is  no  trace  of  justification  in  the  Old 
Testament  of  the  Mohammedan  treatment  of 
woman.  It  might  be  well  for  Christians,  too 
anxious  to  save  Solomon's  reputation,  not  to 
follow  the  example  of  the  Turks. 

We  appeal  from  Solomon  the  sensualist  to 
Solomon  the  pure ;  from  the  king  with  his 
harem  of  a  thousand  women  to  the  young 
prince  at  Shechem  praying  for  divine  wisdom, 
or  as  the  leader  of  Israel  in  rapt  communion 
with  God  at  the  dedication  of  the  temple ; 
from  the  gray  -  headed  sinner  who  forgot 
Jehovah  to  the  wise  man  who  in  consecrated 
and  inspired  manhood  coined  proverbs,  and 
possibly  penned  other  small  portions  of  Holy 
Writ.  It  is  not  the  Solomon  of  early  life  and 
middle  age,  but  only  the  blackslider  and  the 
recreant  voluptuary  that  we  hold  up  to  de- 
served execration. 

The  action  of  Solomon  in  introducing  prof- 
ligacy and  idolatry  in  Israel  was  as  the  open- 


THEORY  AND  INTERPRETATION.         2^ 

ing  of  the  floodgates  of  iniquity.  From  his 
time,  or  immediately  after  his  death,  dates  the 
general  introduction  of  the  da7na  or  mounds 
on  wliich  the  worship  of  Astarte  was  cele- 
brated. Henceforth  the  "  high-places,"  or 
Asherah,  so  often  spoken  of  in  the  historical 
books,  became  strongholds  for  the  propagation 
of  a  vile  idolatry  joined  to  sensualism.  Hith- 
erto idol-worship  had  been  accidental  and  occa- 
sional ;  from  Solomon's  time  until  the  Baby- 
lonian captivity  it  became  rampant  and  hostile. 
It  meant  war  to  the  death  against  the  religion 
of  Jehovah.  The  prophets,  sooner  than  the 
people,  discerned  this  truth,  and  with  fiery 
zeal  for  God  strove  to  make  the  fact  patent  to 
all.  With  more  and  more  seductiveness  of 
manner,  idolatry  spread  through  the  masses, 
until  in  Elijah's  time  Israel  was  sunk  low  in- 
deed. 

For  the  state  of  things  which  we  read  of  in 
times  not  far  distant  from  Solomon,  and  for 
the  crowds  of  "strange  women,"  with  the  con- 
sequent looseness  of  public  morals,  as  revealed 
in  the  book  of  Proverbs  and  in  the  prophetic 
writings,  Solomon,  more  than  any  other  one 
man  in  Hebrew  history,  is  distinctly  respon- 
sible. 

That  the  justness  of  the  view  and  interpre- 
tation of  this  book  of  the  Bible  as  held   by 


26  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

the  great  modern  Hebraists  may  be  made  ap- 
parent, let  us  look  at  Solomon  through  the 
perspective  of  history.  We  shall  glance  at 
the  development  of  the  nation  as  sketched  in 
the  writings  of  the  Hebrew  historians,  and 
from  them  learn  what  mark  the  third  and  last 
sovereign  of  the  united  kingdom  made.  By  a 
study  of  the  life  and  times  of  the  grand  mon- 
arch, and  of  the  characters,  the  artistic  form, 
and  literary  features  of  this  great  "  lay  of  the 
Hebrew  troubadour,"  we  may  all  the  more 
appreciate  its  exquisite  beauty.  Let  us  then 
give  attention  to  a  few  introductory  chapters. 


CHAPTER  II. 

LIFE    AND    TIMES    OF    KING   SOLOMON. 

A  THOUSAND  years  are  but  as  yesterday  in 
the  sight  of  God.  A  millennium  and  a  moment 
are  alike  to  Him.  He  makes  a  covenant  with 
man,  and  though  it  takes  ten  centuries  to  fulfill 
it,  yet  God  is  not  slack  nor  forgetful  concern- 
ing his  promises.  For  while  He  keeps  man 
waiting  He  educates  him  and  advances  the 
race. 

He  called  Abraham  out  of  the  Chaldees, 
bidding  him  to  leave  home  and  set  his  face 
westward.  The  father  of  the  faithful  never 
owned  the  land  promised  him,  but  lived  in 
tents,  an  heir,  not  a  possessor.  Faith  instead 
of  fee-simple  was  his  reward.  Yet  when  he 
died  he  bequeathed,  not  an  estate  of  broad 
acres,  with  the  empty  name  of  a  nobody  and 
an  example  of  selfishness,  but  a  deathless  name 
and  a  pattern  of  faith,  which  even  to-day  are 
beacon  lights  of  progress  and  aspiration.  Abra- 
ham is  the  model  of  character  to  three  civili- 
zatiorfs. 

Neither  Isaac  nor  Jacob  ever  possessed  the 


28  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

promised  land,  and  with  four  hundred  years  of 
captivity  in  Egypt,  it  seemed  as  though  Jeho- 
vah had  forgotten  his  covenant. 

Even  after  Moses'  dehverance,  and  Joshua's 
conquest,  the  divine  measure  of  promise  was 
not  fulfilled,  for  all  around  Israel  were  power- 
ful enemies.  It  was  not  until  nearly  a  thou- 
sand years  had  flown,  and  David's  victories  had 
been  won,  that  the  word  of  the  Lord  to  Abra- 
ham seemed  to  be  accomplished  in  the  reign  of 
his  (David's)  son  Solomon  ;  then  the  sceptre  of 
the  heirs  of  Abraham  extended  from  Phoenicia 
to  Egypt,  and  from  Palmyra  to  the  Mediterra- 
nean. 

During  all  these  centuries  the  Almighty  was 
educating  his  elect  people,  training  the  family 
into  a  tribe,  the  tribe  into  a  people,  and  the 
people  into  a  nation,  with  a  land  and  a  purpose. 

No  longer,  from  David's  time  on,  was  God's 
covenant  with  one  old  man,  nor  with  a  family 
or  clan,  nor  with  a  body  of  slaves,  nor  a  rabble 
of  freedmen,  nor  even  with  groups  of  petty 
principalities,  or  turbulent  clan-like  republics  ; 
but  the  flower  of  his  fulfilled  promise  was  given 
to  a  united,  intelligent  commonwealth,  a  union 
of  hearts  and  homes,  with  one  language,  one 
blood,  one  experience,  and  one  hope.  Slowly, 
painfully,  but  at  last  gloriously,  the  seed  sown 
in  Abraham  ripened  in  Solomon. 


LIFE  AND    TIMES  OF  KING  SOLOMON.        29 

It  was  under  this  third  king  that  the  Hebrew 
monarchy  rose  to  the  zenith  of  national  splen- 
dor. Wealth  and  power  in  all  departments  of 
human  achievement  were  greater  than  at  any 
epoch  in  Hebrew  history  before. 

Art,  science,  literature,  inventions,  com- 
merce, and  luxury  flourished.  Jerusalem,  once 
merely  the  Philistine  fortress  of  Jebus,  con- 
taining a  collection  of  mud  huts  or  wooden 
dwellin-gs,  was  made  a  splendid  capital  in  brick 
and  marble,  full  of  palaces  and  public  edifices, 
amid  which  the  temple  glistened  in  lordly  ma- 
jesty. 

Cities  were  built  in  favored  places,  and  towns 
along  the  caravan  routes  over  the  desert.  Sea- 
ports were  established,  from  which  white- 
winged  ships  flew  to  foreign  coasts,  westward 
especially  to  Italy  and  Spain,  and  eastward  to 
India  and  to  the  Golden  Chersonese.  The 
peculiar  phrase,  "  the  ends  of  the  earth,"  was 
coined  in  the  Solomonic  era. 

The  ships  of  the  desert  and  the  navy  on  the 
deep  brought  back  the  wonders  of  the  tropics 
and  the  treasures  of  "  the  ends  of  the  earth  "  to 
enliven  the  monotony  of  Palestinian  life.  Ivory 
for  the  palaces  and  throne,  apes  and  peacocks 
for  the  garden,  with  all  kinds  of  oriental  stuffs, 
perfumes,  and  spices,  were  imported,  —  their 
names  standing  in  Tamil  and  Chinese  on  the 


30  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

Hebrew  page  of  the  Bible.  A  striking  addi- 
tion to  the  fauna  of  the  country,  having  mani- 
fold and  far-reaching  influence,  was  the  intro- 
duction of  the  horse  from  Egypt.  Great  works 
of  engineering  and  fortification  were  planned, 
the  rocks  were  tunneled,  and  aqueducts  built 
above  and  below  ground. 

Some  of  the  stones  with  the  Phoenician  ma- 
son's marks  in  red  paint,  as  fresh  as  if  laid  on 
yesterday,  and  tablets  erected  by  Solomon's 
contractors  and  engineers,  or  carved  on  the 
rock  by  his  workmen,  have  been  dug  up  of  late. 
Just  as  one  of  the  first  uses  of  lightning  har- 
nessed to  the  telegraph  wire  was  to  catch 
thieves,  so  the  tablets  of  this  age  or  later  have 
served,  among  other  uses,  to  stamp  the  bogus 
Deuteronomy  manuscripts  of  the  antiquarian 
peddler    Shapira  and  his  ilk  as  forgeries. 

Very  few  relics  of  Hebrew  antiquity  before 
the  time  of  David,  except  sepulchres  and  wells, 
have  come  down  intact  to  us  ;  but  the  actual 
work  and  material  of  Solomon's  reservoirs,  the 
beveled  stones  of  the  temple-foundation,  frag- 
ments of  piers  and  arches  in  Jerusalem,  and  the 
ruins  of  Baalbcc,  still  remain  as  mute  witnesses 
of  his  glory. 

It  is  first  also  in  Solomon's  time  that  we 
see  clearly  the  beautiful  things  of  earth  joined 
to    the   service   of   religion,  and   worship   en- 


LIFE  AND    TIMES  OF  KING  SOLOMON.       3 1 

shrined  in  fitting  architecture.  The  pillars  of 
Jachin  and  Boaz,  probably  named  after  young 
sons  of  Solomon,  possibly  imitating  the  pillars 
of  Hercules,  with  their  strength  of  bronze  and 
their  beauty  of  carved  lily  work,  typify  the 
union  of  grace  and  simplicity,  and  teach  us 
that  it  becomes  us  to  be  winsome  in  our  ways 
as  well  as  strict  in  our  character,  that  it  is 
right  to  unite  the  manners  of  a  gentleman  to 
the  sturdiness  of  a  Puritan,  and  that  it  is  a 
good  thing  to  be  civilized  as  well  as  to  be 
saved. 

The  development  of  political  ability,  defen- 
sive science,  and  national  prosperity  also  kept 
pace  with  progress  along  other  lines.  Gov- 
ernment was  simplified  by  dividing  functions 
and  centralizing  power.  The  military  art  was 
improved.  Cavalry  was  added  to  the  other 
arms  of  the  service.  Twelve  thousand  horses 
and  riders  furnished  new  sights  to  the  Israel- 
ites ;  for  in  David's  time,  and  before,  the  na- 
tional dignitaries  rode  on  mules. 

Now  the  streets  of  Jerusalem  were  noisy 
with  the  ceaseless  clatter  of  hoofs  and  the  roll 
of  three-horsed  chariots.  A  procession  of  the 
royal  life-guards,  composed  of  the  flower  of 
David's  veterans,  as  it  moved  through  the 
country  accompanying  the  state-carriage,  was 
everywhere  a  sight  for  the  people,  and  drew 


32  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

out  crowds  to  witness  the  superb  spectacle. 
As  when  the  Prince  of  Wales  entered  Beirut 
in  Syria,  a  few  years  ago,  the  municipal  of- 
ficers burnt  heaps  of  costly  incense  to  make 
clouds  of  perfume,  so  Solomon's  train  moved 
from  his  country-seat  at  En-gedi  up  to  Jeru- 
salem, the  capital,  amid  an  atmosphere  murky 
but  delicious  with  myrrh  and  frankincense. 
Riding  in  his  palanquin,  he  was  surrounded 
by  his  mounted  life-guards  with  their  drawn 
swords  flashing,  hilts  at  the  thighs,  blades  at 
ear  and  shoulder.  Gorgeous  beyond  descrip- 
tion was  his  traveling  litter  or  palanquin. 

Who  were  these  body-guards  of  the  Hebrew 
emperor  .-•  They  are  over  and  over  again 
spoken  of  as  "David's  mighty  men"  or  he- 
roes. In  the  original  records  they  are  called 
Gibborim.  A  glance  at  their  history  may  be 
interesting. 

King  David,  a  man  of  war,  had  organized 
a  disciplined  army,  which  in  time  of  peace 
had  melted  away  again,  the  soldiers  returning 
to  the  pursuits  of  peace.  The  nucleus  of  the 
standing  army,  however,  that  remained  was  a 
body  of  foreign  mercenaries,  like  the  Swiss 
guard  of  the  kings  of  France,  or  the  Christian 
janizaries  of  the  Turkish  sultan.  These  faith- 
ful veterans  had  stood  by  him  in  that  awful 
day  of  the  rebellion  of  Absalom.     When  the 


LIFE  AND    TIMES  OF  KING  SOLOMON.       33 

king  was  driven  out  of  Jerusalem,  this  body- 
guard, composed  largely  of  Cherethites,  or 
Cretans,  Pelethites,  and  other  foreigners,  un- 
der captains  Joab  and  Benaiah,  practically 
crushed  the  insurrection  and  kept  the  govern- 
ment in  place. 

These  veterans  of  many  wars  are  frequently 
referred  to  in  Kings,  Chronicles,  and  the 
Song  of  Songs.  Some  of  the  oldest  of  them 
may  have  been  David's  comrades,  when  he 
himself  was  an  outlaw  living  among  the  Phil- 
istines, since  the  name  Peleth  or  Pelethite  is 
probably  a  contraction  for  Philistine.  Some 
were  from  the  island  of  Crete  in  the  Mediter- 
ranean. It  would  be  no  more  remarkable  in 
the  Hebrew  emperor  to  keep  Philistines  in  his 
pay  than  for  the  Pope  and  Roman  Catholic 
kings  of  P'rance  to  be  served  by  the  Swiss 
guards,  who  were  often  republicans  in  politics 
and  Protestant  in  faith. 

In  addition  to  these  household  troops  or  the 
imperial  guard,  and  to  the  militia,  serving  as 
garrison  relays,  there  were  the  city  watchmen, 
who  may  be  called  the  metropolitan  police  of 
Jerusalem.  These  night  patrols,  who  were 
expected  always  to  "keep  the  city,"  were  evi- 
dently a  body  of  vigilant  and  faithful  men, 
who  not  only  protected  good  citizens  against 
thieves,  but  were  objects  of  awe  to  rustics  and 
visitors. 


34  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

In  a  word,  the  organization  of  the  Hebrew 
Empire  was  military,  with  a  nucleus  of  foreign 
mercenaries,  who  were  professional  soldiers  of 
fortune.  These  were  only  too  ready  to  per- 
form the  king's  behests,  and  unless  Samuel 
prophesied  falsely,  and  all  history  is  a  mistake, 
the  Gibborim,  despite  their  usefulness,  were  a 
menace  to  the  liberties  of  Israel. 

As  for  the  subjects  of  King  Solomon,  we 
find  ihat  they  were  far  from  being  a  homo- 
geneous people.  The  free-born  Israelites,  de- 
scendants of  the  conquerors,  who  came  in  at 
the  conquest  under  Joshua,  stood  first  in  civil 
rank  and  privileges  after  the  imperial  family. 
Next  below  these  were  the  native  Canaanites, 
more  or  less  loyal  to  the  government  of  Israel. 
They  constituted  a  numerous  and  important 
body  of  tributary  vassals  who  needed  to  be 
wisely  dealt  with. 

The  strangers  from  Egypt  and  surround- 
ing countries,  but  most  especially  from  Phoe- 
nicia, whose  people  spoke  nearly  the  same 
language  as  Hebrew,  were  merchants,  artists, 
decorators,  and  other  skilled  mechanics  em- 
ployed on  the  public  works,  sailors  and  cara- 
van-men. They  formed  a  special  class  under 
the  king's  protection,  while  they  were  tempo- 
rarily sojourning  at  the  ports  and  cities,  at- 
tracted by  trade  and  new  enterprises  requiring 


LIFE  AND    TIMES  OF  KING  SOLOMON.       35 

technical  knowledge.  They  formed  in  Jeru- 
salem a  little  community  by  themselves  known 
as  Maktesh,  or  the  Phoenician  quarter,  which 
may  have  been  in  the  deep  ravine  between 
Zion  and  Moriah  (Zeph.  i.  11). 

Beneath  these  three  classes  of  the  people 
were  numbers  of  slaves  on  whom  fell  the  bur- 
den of  constant  and  unrequited  toil.  Whether 
prisoners  captured  in  war,  or  those  born  in 
servitude,  or  sold  for  poverty  or  debt,  the 
slave's  lot  was  but  little  if  any  easier  under 
Hebrew  than  under  Roman  or  American  op- 
pression. 

In  addition  to  this  civic  ambition,  Solomon 
was  smitten  with  the  fever  of  architecture, 
which  is  ever  one  of  the  most  expensive  of  a 
king's  ambitions,  as  the  people  who  must  pay 
the  bills  soon  discover.  This  passion  for 
building  was  in  addition  to  that  for  the  ships 
which,  built  and  manned  by  Phoenician  sailors, 
he  sent  to  the  ends  of  the  seas,  eastward  to 
the  Asian  peninsulas,  and  westward  to  Tar- 
shish  in  Spain.  For  the  spoil  they  brought, 
he  erected  fitting  edifices.  He  had  botanic 
gardens  and  menageries,  full  of  rare  animals, 
plants,  and  the  substances  for  decoration,  so 
numerously  mentioned  in  the  Song  of  Songs. 

In  order  to  build  and  furnish  his  palaces, 
harems,  and  public  buildings,  the  king  made 


36  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

requisitions  of  forced  labor  from  Israel,  and 
sent  the  gangs  to  cut  down  forests,  to  float  the 
timber  by  sea  from  Phoenicia  to  Joppa,  and  to 
make  overland  transport  of  the  logs  to  Jeru- 
salem. He  blasted  and  cut  stone  in  quarries, 
and  dug  conduits  and  watercourses. 

Solomon  had  the  reputation  of  building  the 
first  temple  to  Jehovah,  and  of  organizing 
elaborate  services  and  sacrifices.  Yet  the 
temple  of  Solomon,  as  any  one  can  see  who 
studies  the  dimensions,  was  a  comparatively 
small  edifice.  There  are  many  buildings  in 
Europe  and  America  much  larger  than  the 
marble  tent  which  he  pitched  to  the  glory  of 
Jehovah  in  Jerusalem.  Rightly  did  Justinian 
cry  out  when  St.  Sophia  was  finished,  "  I  have 
surpassed  thee,  O  Solomon."  The  Jerusalem 
temple  was,  in  the  main,  a  noble  specimen  of 
Phoenician  art.  While  seven  years  were  occu- 
pied in  completing  the  temple,  the  king  was 
fifteen  years  in  building  his  own  house.  What 
he  did  for  the  Lord  was  only  a  fraction  as 
compared  with  what  he  did  for  himself.  Nearly 
all  the  masonry,  and  decorative  art-work,  down 
to  this  epoch,  was  done  by  Phoenician  artists 
while  Solomon  lived.  When  Captain  Warren, 
the  excavator  in  the  Jerusalem  which  belongs 
to  Turkey,  sunk  his  shaft  beneath  the  layers 
and    rubbish  of  twenty-eight  centuries  to  get 


LIFE  AND    TIMES  OF  KING  SOLOMON.       37 

at  the  rock-foundation  of  Solomon's  temple,  he 
found  the  quarry  marks  of  the  Phoenician  stone- 
cutters. The  lowest  stones  of  all  bear  inscrip- 
tions of  the  men  whose  ancestors  are  reputed 
to  have  given  the  western  world  alphabets. 

The  other  famous  buildings  in  the  capital  city 
were  the  House  of  the  Forest  of  Lebanon  — 
so-called  because  of  its  hall  of  many  columns, 
on  which  were  hung  the  golden  shields,  and 
targets,  and  battle  trophies  captured  in  David's 
wars.  The  Hall  of  Judgment  was  another 
renowned  structure,  wainscoted  with  cedar 
wood,  and  in  popular  phrase  called  the  King's 
Gate  or  Sublime  Porte,  the  title  sometimes 
bestowed  on  the  sovereign;  just  as  in  Egypt, 
Japan,  and  Turkey  of  to-day,  Pharaoh,  Mikado, 
or  the  Sublime  Porte  in  each  case  means  the 
Grand  Gate,  that  is,  the  place  where  judicial 
decisions  were  given. 

Of  the  many  buildings  devoted  to  the  harem, 
or  zenana,  the  finest  was  doubtless  for  the 
principal  or  Egyptian  wife.  In  addition  to  the 
edifices  in  the  capital  city,  there  were  in  differ- 
ent parts  of  the  country  summer  palaces,  vil- 
las, hunting  lodges,  gardens,  fish-ponds,  towers, 
cavalry  quarters,  stables,  and  chariot-houses. 
There  were  also  caravansaries  on  the  main 
road,  trading  stations,  fortresses,  and  vine- 
yards, all  under  the  direct  imperial  supervis- 
ion. 


38  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

It  must,  however,  never  be  forgotten  that 
all  this  was  extravagance,  and  unjustifiable 
extravagance.  It  was  the  same  old  story  of  a 
hard-working  father  who  toils  during  his  life- 
time to  heap  up  riches,  not  knowing  who  shall 
gather  them,  succeeded  by  a  spendthrift  son 
who  enjoys  and  squanders.  These  were  the 
flush  times  of  expansion,  after  long  and  suc- 
cessful wars,  when  things  were,  so  to  speak,  on 
a  paper-money  basis.  Speculation  was  rife,  and 
the  inevitable  shrinkage  had  to  come.  Though 
some  of  Solomon's  schemes  were  successful 
enterprises  yielding  revenue,  most  of  them 
were  matters  of  daily  expense,  and  the  bur- 
den of  sustaining  these  things  fell  on  the  peo- 
ple, who  were  taxed  and  bled  beyond  the  limit 
of  human  patience.  So,  in  accordance  with 
all  history,  or  divine  Providence  —  as  we  will 
—  as  soon  as  the  iron  hand  of  Solomon  was 
removed  by  death,  the  people  petitioned  Reho- 
boam  to  ease  the  crushing  burden  of  taxes  in 
money  and  levies  of  forced  labor. 

The  new  king  took  the  advice  of  the  youth 
about  his  court  instead  of  the  warnings  of  the 
old  men.  Then  the  people  were  goaded  into 
rebellion,  and  ten  tribes  went  into  secession,  set 
up  a  northern  confederacy,  and  David's  king- 
dom was  split  in  twain.  The  results  were 
gradual  alienation  in  both  politics  and  religion. 


LIFE  AND    TIMES  OF  KING  SOLOMON.       39 

and  in  language  the  swamping  of  Hebrew  by 
the  Aramaic. 

There  was  no  bloodshed  except  in  one  no- 
table instance.  Just  as  after  the  American 
civil  war  all  were  forgiven,  except  the  keeper 
of  the  Andersonville  prison,  who  was  hanged 
for  his  personal  cruelties,  so  no  man  in  Israel 
had  to  die,  except  one.  The  name  of  this  es- 
pecial culprit  was  Adoniram,  the  head  superin- 
tendent of  the  forced  labor.  He  alone  was 
murdered,  thus  paying  for  his  cruelties  by  his 
life. 

In  addition  to  the  historical  books  of  Israel, 
the  poem  of  "  Solomon's  Song,"  so  called, 
opens  wide  windows  of  light  upon  the  days 
of  Hebrew  imperialism,  and  shows  how  the 
luxury  and  sensualism  of  Solomon  and  his 
favorites  in  the  palaces  of  the  capital  meant 
poverty  and  distress  among  the  people.  For 
the  few  who  enjoyed,  there  were  unpaid  labor 
and  cruelty  for  the  many  oppressed. 

David's  successor,  as  the  Bible  represents 
him,  was  somewhat  different  from  the  Solo- 
mon of  unproved  and  baseless  tradition.  He 
is  the  typical  "wise  man"  of  Jewish  tradition 
and  oriental  exaggeration  whence  our  nursery 
and  Sunday-school  literature  has  liberally  bor- 
rowed. He  is  believed  by  many  to  have  been 
the  author  of    a   considerable  portion  of  the 


40  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

Holy  Scriptures.  The  evidence  for  this  impres- 
sion is  summed  up  in  the  three  titles  of  the 
books  of  Proverbs,  Ecclesiastes,  and  Song  of 
Songs,  these  titles  or  portions  of  them  being 
from  authors  other  than  Solomon,  or  added 
long  afterwards.  The  voice  of  modern  schol- 
arship is  almost  unanimously  against  late  tra- 
dition, as  indeed  the  text  of  the  Bible  itself 
seems  to  be.  The  common  phrase,  "  the  un- 
broken testimony  of  all  antiquity,"  means  the 
inherited  and  usually  unexamined  traditions 
of  Jews  who  lived  long  after  the  epoch  of 
Solomon. 

The  biblical  basis  of  the  popular  notion  of 
Solomon's  literary  career  lies  in  the  single 
verse  of  i  Kings  iv.  32,  which  says  not  one 
word  about  writing  or  literary  composition, 
"  he  spake  three  thousand  proverbs :  and  his 
songs  were  a  thousand  and  five." 

There  is  no  hint  here  or  elsewhere  in  the 
Scriptures  that  these  songs  were  of  a  sacred, 
much  less  of  an  inspired  nature,  or  that  they 
were  committed  to  writing.  He  spoke  prov- 
erbs or  wise  sayings,  which  in  numbLT  ex- 
ceed several  times  over  the  entire  collection  of 
the  authors  who  arc  represented  in  the  book 
of  Proverbs.  None  of  the  Psalms,  though 
those  numbered  Ixxii.  and  cxxvii.  bear  his 
name  in  the  titles  added  by  editors  in  later 


LIFE  AND    TIMES  OF  KING  SOLOMON.       4I 

times,  is  certainly  from  Solomon's  pen  or  lips  ; 
nor  is  it  probable  that  he  had  anything  to 
do  with  the  Canticle.  He  encouraged  learn- 
ing,  and  gathered  men  of  culture  and  erudi- 
tion about  his  court ;  and  under  him  began 
the  age  of  Hebrew  philosophy  and  the  wis- 
dom-literature, which  later  blossomed  in  those 
deathless  classics  of  Israel  which  have  sur- 
'vived  the  wrecks  of  time.  Yet  it  is  more 
than  probable  that  one  who  spent  his  life  as 
Solomon  did,  and  stained  his  soul  with  so 
many  habitual  sins,  had  very  little  to  do  with 
the  making  of  our  Heavenly  Father's  book. 
The  Bible  pictures  the  third  king  of  the  He- 
brews not  as  a  psalmist,  scribe,  poet,  or 
prophet,  but  as  an  ambitious  man,  a  builder, 
a  trafficker,  and  above  all  an  imitator  of  Pha- 
raoh and  the  kings  and  courts  of  the  nations 
around  him.  He  was  fond  of  display  and 
magnificence ;  he  was  brilliant,  witty,  wise, 
learned ;  but  not  in  his  mature  middle  life  and 
premature  old  age  eminent  as  a  spiritual  man, 
or  one  who,  like  David  with  all  his  sins,  was 
"a  man  after  God's  own  heart." 

It  is  almost  certain  that  Solomon  did  not 
write  either  Ecclesiastes  or  the  Song  of  Songs. 
His  reputation  as  an  author  rests,  as  we  have 
shown,  chiefly  upon  superscriptions  added  af- 
ter the  Babylonian  captivity  to  certain  books 


42  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

or  parts  of  books  in  the  canon,  upon  apoc- 
ryphal writings,  and  upon  belated  tradition. 
The  Bible  text  seems  to  be  silent  upon  the 
subject  on  which  legend  and  popular  notion 
are  so  voluminous.  Among  the  Hebrews  he 
stood  as  the  representative  of  gnomic  wisdom, 
and  had  a  high  reputation  as  a  judge,  but  his 
profligacy,  tyranny,  and  idolatry  impressed  the 
prophets  and  inspired  writers  more  than  his 
wisdom,  literary  power,  or  supposed  inspira- 
tion. Neither  Jesus  nor  apostle,  prophet,  poet, 
or  reformer  quotes  word  or  writing  which  he 
attributes  to  Solomon.  Except  in  the  books 
of  Kings,  which  reveal  his  history ;  tlie  post- 
exilic  Chronicles,  which  show  what  he  did  for 
the  priesthood  ;  or  the  book  of  Proverbs,  which 
gives  some  portion  of  his  wisdom,  he  is  never 
mentioned  in  the  text  of  the  Old  or  New  Tes- 
tament apart  from  the  temple,  or  except  as  a 
monarch  with  a  mighty  reputation  for  splen- 
dor, wisdom,  or  wickedness.  In  tlie  antithe- 
sis which  Jesus  m.akes  between  this  personage 
and  the  lily,  Solomon  stands  in  the  shadow  ;  and 
the  same  may  be  said  of  the  sketch  which 
Stephen  draws  of  the  life  of  this  great  builder, 
"but  Solomon  built  Him  a  house."  Through- 
out the  Bible  Solomon  is  implicitly  held  up 
as  a  warning,  and  in  the  one  place  in  the 
Hebrew   writings,   apart    from    Chronicles,   in 


LIFE  AND    TIMES  OF  KING  SOLOMON.       43 

which  during  later  centuries  his  character  is 
alluded  to,  his  reputation  is  black  enough. 
Hear  Nehemiah,  the  reformer  who  cleansed 
the  nation  so  that  the  folly  wrought  by  semi- 
heathen  kings  has  never  been  nationally  re- 
peated since.     (Neh.  xiii,  26.) 

"  Did  not  Solomon  king  of  Israel  sin  by 
these  things }  yet  among  many  nations  was 
there  no  king  like  him,  who  was  beloved  of  his 
God,  and  God  made  him  king  over  all  Israel : 
nevertheless  even  him  did  outlandish  women 
cause  to  sin." 

The  "book  of  the  Acts  of  Solomon,"  re- 
ferred to  in  I  Kings  xi.  41,  has  not  survived, 
and  belon2:s  with  that  score  or  scores  of  lost 
books  of  Hebrew  literature  to  which  the  Bible 
refers.  The  so-called  "  Psalter  of  Solomon " 
saw  the  light  probably  a  millennium  after  the 
first  temple  had  been  built.  The  books  of 
Kings,  which  give  the  fullest  accounts  of  the 
man  and  his  character,  were  composed  long 
after  his  death,  and  the  Chronicles  not  until 
after  the  Babylonian  captivity. 

In  a  word,  despite  tradition  and  rumor, 
which  always  speaks  most  and  loudest  just 
where  the  divine  word  is  most  silent,  Solo- 
mon's reputation  as  a  holy  man,  an  example, 
is  in  the  Bible  next  to  nothing. 

It  is  well  in  purely  literary  questions  con- 


44  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

cerning  the  Bible  to  take  the  advice  of  Paul, 
and  not  give  heed  to  Jewish  fables,  but  to 
reach  conclusions  founded  on  the  evidence  of 
the  sacred  writings  themselves.  In  thus  bas- 
ing our  judgments  upon  what  the  Scriptures 
teach,  and  in  forming  our  opinions  upon  the 
text  itself  rather  than  upon  legend,  we  do  but 
follow  the  example  of  our  Lord  Jesus,  who 
persistently  challenges  the  traditions  of  the 
scribes,  elders,  and  Pharisees. 

Solomon,  as  a  grown  man  and  as  a  king,  is 
rather  a  character  to  be  held  up  as  an  awful 
example  than  as  a  model.  Taken  in  all,  he 
was  probably  one  of  the  worst  sinners  de- 
scribed in  the  Old  Testament.  With  its  usual 
truth  and  fearlessness,  the  Scriptures  expose 
his  real  character,  and  by  the  later  prophets 
and  by  Jesus  he  is  ignored  or  referred  to  only 
in  rebuke.  The  peculiar  sins  of  Solomon  are 
those  against  which  the  special  genius  of 
Christianity  and  the  direct  teaching  of  the 
Christ  are  most  radically  opposed. 

In  our  exposition  of  the  Song  of  Songs  we 
shall  see  that  he  is  set  before  us  by  the  au- 
thor of  that  book  as  a  tempter  ;  but  we  shall 
also  see  that  in  an  age  of  despotism,  when 
it  was  almost  impossible  for  a  subject,  espe- 
cially a  woman,  to  resist  a  king,  he  was  resisted 
in  the  name  of  God  and  pure  love.     He  was 


LIFE  AND    TIMES  OF  KING  SOLOMON.       45 

triumphed  over  by  one  of  his  plain  but  virtu- 
ous subjects,  the  Shulaniite,  a  country  girl, 
who  even  in  a  great  city  kept  her  life  pure 
and  her  instincts  true  to  rio-ht. 

Her  loyalty  to  Jehovah  was  greater  than  her 
loyalty  to  Solomon.  She  was  a  true  king's 
daughter,  but  her  Sovereign  was  Jehovah  and 
not  Baal,  or  the  patron  of  Baal,  Solomon. 

In  a  word,  we  shall  find  that  for  the  thou- 
sands of  young  men  and  young  women  of  our 
day,  away  from  their  childhood's  home,  father 
and  mother,  friends,  old  associations,  and  so- 
cial forces,  in  the  great  cities,  as  was  the 
maiden  of  Shunem  in  Jerusalem,  there  are  few 
more  practical,  more  modern,  more  helpful 
books  in  the  Bible  than  this  Song  of  Songs. 

What  interpretation  shall  we  follow }  The 
fatal  objection  to  the  allegorical  theory  is  that 
it  tears  the  book  out  of  all  connection  with  Jew- 
ish history  and  the  Old  Testament  economy ; 
while  the  view  of  the  great  modern  masters  of 
Hebrew,  which  we  adopt,  keeps  it  in  vital  re- 
lation to  Old  Testament  times,  circumstances, 
and  people.  Which  is  the  truest,  let  even  the 
reader  of  the  English  Bible  judge  for  himself. 


CHAPTER   III. 

HISTORIC    CHARACTERS    IN    THE    POEM. 

In  glancing  at  Hebrew  history,  we  find  that 
when  it  became  the  fashion  in  Israel  to  have 
kings  and  monarchical  government,  the  Jew- 
ish nation  was  a  loose  confederation  of  tribes, 
each  independent  of  the  other,  having  no  cen- 
tral city,  the  people  worshiping  at  a  num- 
ber of  local  shrines  in  different  parts  of  the 
country. 

The  government  was  a  loose  agglomeration 
of  clan-like  republics.  Not  only  was  the  po- 
litical system  very  simple,  but  there  were  no 
military  resources  for  defense.  Only  here  and 
there  were  the  men  well  armed,  or  able  to 
resist  the  Philistines  and  other  warlike  tribes 
surrounding  them.  The  needs  of  concentra- 
tion and  a  more  vigorous  political  life  were 
keenly  felt ;  but  Samuel  warned  the  people  not 
easily  or  lightly  to  exchange  their  republican 
simplicity  for  a  king  and  court.  He  prophe- 
sied evils  unheard  of.  Nevertheless  the  peo- 
ple demanded  a  monarch. 

Saul,  the  first  king,  was  a  failure  both  as  a 


HISTORIC  CHARACTERS  IN  THE  POEM.       47 

man  and  as  a  ruler.  He  administered  gov- 
ernment as  if  it  were  his  private  estate,  dis- 
tributing the  offices  and  property  under  him 
as  spoils  of  a  victorious  party,  like  some  of  the 
presidents  who  have  disgraced  the  American 
republic.  Nearly  all  the  men  to  whom  he  gave 
"fields  and  vineyards,  and  made  captains  of 
thousands  and  captains  of  hundreds  "  (i  Sam. 
xxii.  7)  were  his  fellow-tribesmen  of  Benja- 
min. In  character  he  was  weak,  vacillating, 
moody,  and  cowardly. 

David  was  a  man  built  on  a  nobler  moral 
scale.  As  a  man  and  a  king  he  was  a  mag- 
nificent success.  He  planned  for  the  whole 
nation,  without  regard  to  his  particular  tribe. 
He  conquered  the  stronghold  of  Jebus,  and 
organized  his  government  on  the  idea  of  equal 
favor  to  all  the  tribes.  He  went  so  far  as  to 
have  a  body-guard  composed  of  foreigners,  in- 
stead of  men  of  Judah,  with  the  idea  of  attach- 
ing these  mercenaries  loyally  to  his  own  person, 
and  detaching  them  from  tribal  or  local  in- 
terests. He  gave  the  whole  people  a  sense 
of  nationality  and  left  to  them  the  traditions 
of  victory.  He  annihilated  his  enemies,  or 
turned  them  into  tributary  vassals.  He  also 
prepared  the  wealth  and  material  for  a  temple 
to  Jehovah,  and  to  which  the  people,  leaving 
the  scattered  shrines  and    miscellaneous,  and 


48  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

more  or  less  holy,  places,  should  assemble  for 
national  worship.  David  had  his  shortcom- 
ings, and  they  were  many,  and  yet  the  story 
of  his  life  is  perennially  fresh,  helpful,  and  in- 
teresting. He  was  a  man  of  great  faults  and 
great  virtues.  He  sinned  grievously,  but  he 
repented  nobly.  God  freely  forgave  him  all 
his  faults  except  one,  his  shameful  treatment 
of  the  captain  in  his  army,  who,  although  a 
foreigner,  was  so  loyal  to  him.  This  Hittite 
was  a  splendid  example  of  the  chivalry  of  the 
Canaanites  who  served  with  the  Hebrew  sol- 
diery. 

After  Uriah  had  been  disposed  of  in  battle, 
David  suffered  life-long  miseries  at  the  hands 
of  Joab,  the  man  who  knew  the  secret  of  his 
sin.  The  widow  of  the  dead  man  who  had  so 
easily  and  disgracefully  yielded  to  the  king, 
and  was  equally  guilty  with  her  consort  in 
crime,  became  the  head  of  the  royal  harem. 
Instead  of  turning  with  horror  from  the  man 
whose  hands  were  red  with  the  blood  of  her 
husband,  she  consented  to  be  his  queen,  and 
one  of  his  many  wives.  For  David  had  set 
the  bad  example  of  having  two  wives  during 
his  wandering  life  as  an  adventurer,  five  when 
reigning  as  king  at  Hebron,  and  an  unknown 
number  at  Jerusalem.  The  state  of  morals 
with    the   kings  of   Israel  at  this  epoch   was 


HISTORIC   CHARACTERS  IN  THE  POEM.       49 

approximating  that  of  Asiatic  nations  to-day, 
Turkey  for  instance,  where  children  are  born 
in  a  herd,  not  in  a  home.  Bath-Sheba,  whose 
name  means  "  the  daughter  of  an  oath,"  was 
the  grand-daughter  of  Ahitophel,  a  high  coun- 
selor, first  of  David  and  then  of  Absalom. 
This  man  is  known  to  us  as  a  renegade  lawyer, 
who  hanged  himself  when  his  advice  was  not 
taken.  His  is  the  only  case  of  suicide  in  civil 
life  mentioned  in  the  Old  Testament  as  that 
of  Judas  is  in  the  New.  His  name,  given  in 
all  probability  posthumously,  means  "  brother 
of  foolishness."  We  do  not  know  much  about 
Bath-Sheba,  but  what  we  do  is  to  her  disad- 
vantage. 

Since  she  came  to  David  in  secret  and  mar- 
ried the  murderer  of  her  husband,  she  serves 
as  warning  rather  than  example.  She  was  a 
"  door "  rather  than  a  "  wall  "  to  the  royal 
sinner.  (Song  of  Songs  viii.  8,  9.)  As  it  is 
woman's  chief  glory  to  resist  the  sacrifice  of 
her  purity,  so  is  it  her  deepest  disgrace  to 
yield  too  easily  to  the  tempter.  Yet  such  was 
the  prestige  of  the  king  as  representative  of 
Deity  that  it  is  difficult  to  sec  how  any  Israel- 
itish  woman  of  ordinary  moral  strength  could 
have  resisted  his  addresses  or  demand.  Yet, 
as  we  shall  see,  there  was  one  who  could  and 
did,  becoming  a  "  palace  of  silver,"  her  person 
as  unassailable  as  "towers." 


50  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

Of  Bath-Sheba's  five  sons  born  to  David, 
the  first  died  young.  Solomon  was  the  second 
of  Bath-Sheba  and  the  tenth  of  David.  The 
name  Solomon  in  Hebrew  is  Shelomoh,  which 
the  orientals,  such  as  the  Turks  and  other  Mo- 
hammedans, call  Suleiman.  Western  people, 
following  Josephus  and  the  Jews  at  the  time 
of  Christ,  use  the  spelling  and  pronunciation 
of  Solomon.  The  name  is  equivalent  to  our 
Frederick,  which  means  "  rich  in  peace."  It 
was  given  immediately  at  the  birth  of  the  boy, 
and  very  probably  by  the  mother  herself.  In 
this  name  she  may  have  intended  to  rear  a 
monument  of  gratitude  to  Jehovah  for  peace 
after  long  wars,  but  more  probably  because  she 
hailed  the  birth  of  a  beautiful  living  child,  and 
this  child  a  son,  as  a  sure  token  of  the  divine 
forgiveness  of  her  sin. 

It  has  been  well  said  of  our  revised  English 
version  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  that  the  text 
represents  in  the  main  tradition,  while  the 
scholarship  is  found  in  the  margin.  Turn- 
ing to  2  Samuel  xii.  24,  we  read  in  the  mar- 
gin ".v/zr  called."  In  the  same  version,  in  the 
next  verse,  it  is  said  that  "  the  Lord  loved  him 
(the  babe),  and  he  (David)  sent  by  the  hand  of 
Nathan  the  prophet,  and  he  (Nathan)  called 
his  name  Jedidiah,  for  the  Lord's  sake." 

Jedidiah  was  a  name   never  used  publicly, 


inSTORIC  CHARACTERS  IN   THE  POEM.       5  I 

but  exclusively  in  the  home.  It  means  "  be- 
loved," or  "  darling  of  Jah  "  —  this  name  of 
God  being  an  abbreviation  for  Jehovah.  This 
word  Jah,  though  found  only  once  in  the  Eng- 
lish Bible,  in  the  68th  Psalm,  occurs  in  hun- 
dreds of  words  in  the  Hebrew  original,  being 
especially  common  in  proper  names  like  those 
of  Elijah,  Isaiah,  Jeremiah,  Adonijah,  and  in 
superlative  expressions,  as  in  the  one  passage 
in  the  Canticle,  which  the  revision  expresses 
as  "  a  very  flame  of  the  Lord  "  (chap.  viii.  6). 
As  the  margin  shows,  the  name  of  the  Divine 
Being  here  is  Jah,  this  shalebeth-yah  being  the 
God-kindled  fire  of  love. 

This  little  by-play  upon  words  as  illustrated 
in  the  naming  of  David's  son,  and  which  opens 
such  a  window  into  his  home  life,  is  apt  to  be 
lost  upon  us  unless  we  remember  that  "Jedid" 
and  "  David  "  both  have  the  same  meaning  of 
darling  or  beloved,  and  that  David's  idea  was 
that  though  he  was  the  darling  of  his  parents 
and  his  people,  this  son  of  hope  born  of  Bath- 
Sheba  was  even  more.  He  was  the  darling 
of  Jehovah.  In  the  127th  Psalm  this  word 
"his  beloved  "  occurs,  and  the  title-makers  who 
supplied  the  collection  with  editorial  head- 
lines have  added  "A  Song  of  Ascents:  of 
Solomon." 

Inheriting  much  of  his  father's  intellectual 


52  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

ability,  though  a  poor  soldier  and  military 
guardian,  employing  his  talents  for  the  most 
part  in  vastly  different  lines  of  achievement, 
Solomon  grew  up  first  under  the  care  of  his 
mother  and  of  Nathan  the  scribe  and  prophet. 
David  set  aside  the  claims  of  all  his  other  off- 
spring, and  by  oath  made  Bath-Sheba's  his  suc- 
cessors to  the  throne.  With  his  father  too  aged 
to  actively  counsel  him,  his  mother  became  his 
chief  guardian  and  adviser.  Solomon  is,  in  one 
sense,  a  type  and  embodiment  of  his  age.  In 
him  we  see  a  miniature  of  the  Hebrew  empire, 
its  strength  and  its  weakness,  its  splendor  and 
its  decay. 

Pure  in  spirit,  virgin  in  mind  and  body,  de- 
vout, meek,  aspiring,  humble,  was  Solomon's 
youth  ;  firm,  wise,  pure.  God-fearing,  was  his 
earlier  manhood.  As  the  primitive  Chinese 
named  their  sovereign,  so  was  Solomon  the 
"self-ruled  ruler."  Had  he  in  middle  life  re- 
mained simple-minded  amid  luxury,  self-mas- 
tered and  single-eyed  towards  God,  he  might 
have  stayed  the  inevitable  end  into  luxury  and 
sensualism,  and  his  record  have  been  vastly 
different.  But  God's  laws  change  not  to  suit 
individuals.  After  oppression,  division,  and 
extravagance  comes  poverty;  after  sensuality, 
disease  and  premature  old  age  ;  after  idolatry, 
God's  wrath. 


HISTORIC  CHARACTERS  IN   THE  POEM.       53 

In  the  time  of  David's  old  age,  when  the 
natural  heat  and  vigor  of  his  body  failed, 
means  were  taken  to  prolong  his  life  by  ten- 
der care,  (i  Kings  i.  1-4.)  According  to  the 
medical  ideas  of  the  age,  and  as  recommended 
by  the  physicians  of  Hebrew  antiquity,  and 
even  by  Galen,  and  according  to  a  custom  that 
was  common  even  into  the  Middle  Ages,  a 
young  person  was  sought  for  to  be  the  king's 
nurse.  The  name  of  the  young  maiden  se- 
lected was  Abishag,  famed  as  the  most  lovely 
girl  of  her  day,  a  native  of  Shunam,  Shunem, 
or  Shulam  ;  names,  in  dialectic  variation,  of  the 
same  place.  This  village,  in  the  north  of  the 
country,  was  famous  in  early  history  as  a  Phil- 
istine camp,  and  later  as  the  home  of  the  widow 
visited  by  Elisha.  It  lay  on  the  fruitful  slope 
of  Mount  (Little)  Hermon,  overlooking  the 
plain  of  Jezreel,  in  the  old  domain  of  the  tribe 
of  Issachar  ;  Nain,  Endor,  and  Esdraelon  being 
well-known  places  near  by,  and  Mount  Gilboa 
being  but  a  few  miles  south.  Shunem  means 
"double  rest,"  or  "two  resting-places."  Her 
childhood  was  spent  amid  the  same  scenes 
familiar  to  the  youth  of  our  Lord  Jesus.  Some 
readers  of  the  Song  of  Songs  see  in  the  in- 
cident narrated  in  chapter  vi.  11-13  the  ex- 
planation of  how  this  fair  girl  was  first  met, 
and  at  the  royal  behest  was  brought  from  her 


54  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

northern    home   in    Galilee   to   the   abode   of 
royalty  in  the  south. 

From  her  humble  surroundings  in  the  coun- 
try to  the  post  of  responsibility  and  honor  in 
the  palace,  the  change  in  Abishag's  circum- 
stances was  great  indeed.  She  served  as  Da- 
vid's attendant  during  the  presumably  short 
time  of  his  dotage  and  weakness,  and  then  at 
his  death  seems  to  have  remained  in  the  palace, 
though  for  how  long  we  do  not  know. 

It  is  more  than  possible,  it  is  quite  prob- 
able, that  Abishag  became  the  object  of  the 
addresses  of  Solomon.  Covetous  of  beauty 
and  ambitious  to  fill  his  harem  with  the  fairest 
faces  and  loveliest  figures  which  the  woman- 
hood, not  only  of  Israel,  but  of  adjoining  coun- 
tries could  furnish,  his  inordinate  desire  to 
possess  this  innocent  Jewess,  who  was  also,  at 
the  time  of  his  father's  death,  one  of  the  most 
important  personages  in  the  kingdom,  was 
probably  one  of  the  causes  of  Solomon's  mur- 
der of  his  brother  Adonijah,  as  related  in  i 
Kings  ii.  12-26.  True  it  is,  also,  that  the  pos- 
session of  one  who  had  been  so  near  the  per- 
son of  great  David  as  Abishag  would  have 
given  Adonijah,  or  any  man  who  Solomon  was 
pleased  to  believe  an  aspirant  to  the  throne, 
a  tremendous  prestige  in  tiie  eyes  of  the 
people. 


HISTORIC  CHARACTERS  nv   THE   POEM.       55 

In  our  days  and  in  Western  civilization,  since 
Jesus,  who  founded  the  mightiest  democracy 
which  is  yet  to  become  world-wide,  taught  us  to 
honor  a  man  because  he  is  a  man,  and  a  king  be. 
cause  he  is  nothing  more,  it  is  hard  to  under- 
stand the  popular  reverence  for  the  person  of  a 
king.     A  relic  of  the  ancient  idea  was  seen  in 
Japan  even  as  late  as  1868,  when  the  nail -par- 
ings and  combings  of  the  hair,  rinsings  of  the 
mouth,  and  other  exiivice  of  the  Mikado,  were 
with  solemn  form  and  ceremony  deposited  and 
preserved,  in  the  one  case  for  the  fire  at  the 
emperor's  death,  or  poured  into  a  consecrated 
place  near  Lake  Biwa,  the  people  along  the  pub- 
lic highway  being  expected  to  prostrate  them- 
selves before   the  vessels  as  they  were  borne 
along.      Solomon's    motive    may  have  been  a 
double  one  :  to  obtain  for  his  harem  a  woman 
beautiful  and  lovely  in   herself,   and    also  by 
attaching  her  to  his  own  person  to  gain  the 
enormous  political    advantage  which   he  very 
naturally  and    even    honestly   may    have    sus- 
pected his  brother  Adonijah  of  coveting.     It  is 
probable,  also,  that  the  author  of  the  historical 
book  of  I  Kings  treats  only  of  the  public  and 
political  phase  of  the  transactions,  while  the 
poetical  book  of  the  Canticle  deals  artistically 
with  the  "  anecdote  "  or  private  and  personal 
phase   of  the  incident  as    it  transpired   from 
those  near  Solomon  to  the  people. 


56  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

The  king  of  Israel  may  have  been  doubly 
angered  at  beholding  in  Adonijah,  even  after 
he  had,  with  most  unoriental  and  almost  Chris- 
tian clemency,  pardoned  him,  an  attempt  to 
repeat  treason,  and  for  this  reason  ordered  his 
death. 

It  is  more  probable,  however,  especially 
since  Bath-Sheba  saw  no  such  plot,  that  Solo- 
mon was  suffering  the  pangs  of  jealousy  and 
rejection  ;  because  Abishag  would  not  receive 
his  attentions.  At  any  rate,  the  despot  dis- 
patched his  chief  assassin  after  the  man  who 
had  interceded  through  the  queen-mother  for 
the  beautiful  Shunamite,  and  Adonijah  was 
murdered  in  exact  accord  with  that  custom  of 
oriental  monarchs  which  still  shows  traces  of 
survival  among  Turks  and  Asiatics.  It  is 
quite  possible  too  that  the  name  Abishag, 
"  source  of  error,"  or  "  father  of  wayward- 
ness," that  is,  "the  heedless"  or  "inconsider- 
ate one,"  was  one  bestowed  in  Jerusalem. 

Adonijah  was  only  one  of  many  whom  the 
king  removed  by  the  dagger,  for  this  was  the 
custom  of  the  time  and  country  ;  and  it  would 
be  absurd  to  judge  a  Hebrew  king  by  the 
standards  of  Christianity  and  of  our  age.  The 
history  of  Israel  on  its  human  side,  even  in 
details,  is  most  wonderfully  like  the  history  of 
Japan,  of  Corea,  of  India,  of  Turkey  ;  but  it 


HISTORIC  CHARACTERS  IN  THE  POEM.       57 

has  a  divine  side  also  which  gave  the  redeem- 
ing and  elevating  element  so  notably  lacking 
in  the  annals  of  most  Asiatic  nations. 

The  inmates  of  the  great  harem  which 
Solomon  assembled  in  Jerusalem  just  as  he 
collected  horses  and  chariots,  gold  and  silver, 
to  excel  and  outshine  his  fellow-rulers  among 
adjoining  nations,  are  the  "  daughters  of  Je- 
rusalem"  of  the  Canticle.  They  were  hand- 
somely dressed  ladies,  favorites  of  the  king, 
living  lives  of  luxury  and  idleness.  In  dark 
contrast  to  the  Shulamite,  who  was  a  devout 
worshiper  of  Jehovah,  many  of  them  were 
heathen,  and  opposed  to  the  strict  and  holy 
life  of  the  upright  Hebrews,  the  servants  of 
Jehovah,  who  were  scandalized  at  Solomon's 
new-fangled  ideas  and  abominable  innovations. 
It  is  said  that  in  Solomon's  harem  there  were 
seven  hundred  wives,  princesses,  and  three 
hundred  concubines.  There  may  be  exagger- 
ation through  copyists'  errors  in  these  exces- 
sive figures,  though  other  vile  imitators  of  his 
bad  example  have  excelled  the  great  Hebrew 
sensualist  in  the  size  of  their  harems.  We  are 
not  to  suppose  that  Solomon  idled  most  of  his 
time  away  among  the  princesses,  concubines, 
odalisques,  singing-women,  and  dancing-girls  ; 
or  that  he  was  a  monster  of  lust ;  or  that  he 
ever  saw  or  spoke  to,  much  less  knew  the  hun- 


58  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

dreds  of  beauties  with  their  female  relatives 
and  servants  that  filled  his  establishment.  His 
object  in  having  so  many  ornamental  women 
was  the  same  as  having  so  many  horses  in  a 
country  that  was  practically  useless  for  cav- 
alry. His  purpose  was  wholly  political  and 
spectacular.  He  married  a  child  of  the  Pha- 
raohs, and  invited  the  daughters  of  the  chiefs 
of  the  vassal  tribes  to  become  members  of  his 
court  or  household,  and  thus  formed  political 
alliances  with  the  various  countries  and  people 
comprehended  within  his  empire. 

The  great  seraglio  at  Constantinople  —  the 
survival  of  barbarism  in  Europe  —  whose  chief 
supporter,  the  sultan,  gets  his  example,  justifi- 
cation, and  orthodoxy  from  Solomon,  spends 
twenty  millions  of  dollars  yearly  in  supporting 
his  herd  of  women,  with  their  accompanying 
hordes  of  servants  and  eunuchs,  of  whom 
there  are  hundreds  whose  names  are  unknown 
to  him.  Out  of  his  harem  he  marries  about 
one  hundred  girls  annually  to  favorite  offi- 
cers, for  this  institution  is  a  sort  of  training 
school  through  which  pashas  of  note  pass 
their  daughters  with  the  view  of  securing  for 
them  eligible  marriages,  with  dowry  and  title. 
So  little  can  the  sultan  actually  know  of  the 
harem,  which  he  is  supposed  to  control,  that 
the  plots  of  murder  and  assassinations  which 


HISTORIC   CHARACTERS  IN  THE  POEM.       59 

are  so  frequently  hatched  in  this  oven  of  ini- 
quity are  often  unknown  to  him  until  accident 
causes  leakage  of  information  which  enables 
him  to  save  his  own  life.  A  virtuous  sultan 
may  hate  the  harem  system  and  wish  to  de- 
stroy the  institution,  but  hoary,  vested  inter- 
ests are  opposed  to  reform,  and  the  traditional 
glory  of  the  dynasty  forbids  it.  Like  some 
exceptional  Asiatic  rulers,  Solomon  may  have 
been  practically  a  monogamist,  though  the 
Scriptures  do  not  encourage  us  in  this  charita- 
ble surmise  ;  yet  the  faces  of  the  poor  must 
be  ground  and  the  blood  of  the  peasantry 
must  be  wrung  out  of  them  to  support  this 
abominable  institution.  As  are  the  effects  of 
a  royal  harem  now,  so  were  they  then  in  the 
days  of  this  Hebrew  king,  who  with  all  his  wis- 
dom wrought  such  folly  in  Israel, 

We  are  quite  ready  to  believe  that  it  was 
a  matter  of  politics  and  of  decorative  effect 
rather,  that  so  grand  a  zenana  was  maintained 
in  Jerusalem.  Still,  it  suggests  Mormonism 
rather  than  Christianity.  The  prophets  were 
all  men  of  one  wife.  Monogamy  was  the  law 
of  God  and  of  Israel.  Though  Abraham  and 
Jacob  were  sinners,  and  in  this  respect  be- 
queathed a  bad  example,  besides  suffering  the 
penalties  of  domestic  unhappincss,  yet  the 
model  marriage  and  holy  example  is  that  of 


60  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

Isaac  and  Rebecca — one  man  to  one  woman. 
True,  it  is  the  idea  of  monogamy  rather  than 
of  a  typical  happy  marriage  in  every  respect, 
that  this  ancient  example  has  been  chosen  for 
the  marriage  service  of  the  Book  of  Common 
Prayer.  What  domestic  miseries  Abraham 
and  Jacob  suffered,  Solomon  experienced  on 
an  exaggerated  scale. 

According  to  the  oriental  proverb,  "  If  you 
keep  a  tiger  you  will  have  nothing  but  trou- 
ble," Solomon  had  now  a  family  of  tigresses 
to  manage.  Once  installed  in  the  palace  and 
on  intimate  terms  with  royalty,  the  heathen 
princess,  unchanged  in  heart,  wanted  near  her 
not  only  relatives,  maids,  servants,  but  her 
religious  associations  and  facilities.  To  please 
his  wives,  to  conciliate  the  various  tribes  and 
nationalities  in  his  heterogeneous  empire,  Sol- 
omon had  shrines  erected  to  the  gods  of  many 
countries.  Even  in  a  republic,  and  under 
Christianity,  what  will  not  a  political  aspirant 
do  to  capture  this  or  that  "  vote,"  and  what 
crying  injustice  will  remain  unredressed  when 
it  has  potency  of  ballots  behind  it }  Solomon 
for  political  effect  was  willing  to  patronize 
idols. 

The  inventory  of  paganism  which  flourished 
under  the  very  shadow  of  Jehovah's  temple, 
as  given  by  the  inspired  historian,  is  a  formi- 


HISTORIC   CHARACTERS  IN  THE  POEM.       6 1 

dable  one.  What  a  confusion  of  tongues  and 
dialects  in  the  zenana  !  There  were  ladies  from 
Egypt,  from  the  countries  west  and  south  of 
the  Dead  Sea,  Moab,  Amnion  and  Edom, 
northerners  from  Zidon  and  Phoenicia,  women 
from  the  once  powerful  nation  of  the  Hittites, 
besides  rosy  rustics  and  city -bred  beauties 
from  all  over  the  empire.  What  a  succession 
of  sensations  must  have  furnished  gossip  to 
the  imperial  city,  as  it  turned  from  brick  to 
stone  and  from  plain  sycamore  to  Phoenician 
cedar !  The  frequent  cavalcades  of  camels  and 
horses  bringing  new  personages  with  their 
dowry  and  presents  and  the  outflowing  royal 
embassies  and  gift-laden  caravans  to  vassals 
and  princes  filled  the  streets  with  spectacular 
brilliancy  and  gazing  crowds.  Yet  how  must 
the  wise  have  grieved  as  they  saw  rising  on 
the  hills  near  the  city  the  painted  poles  under 
which  the  lascivious  dances  were  danced  ;  and 
the  shrines  built  before  which  the  orgies  of 
Ashtoreth — goddess  of  beauty  and  voluptu- 
ousness —  were  celebrated  ;  and,  worse  than 
all,  the  idols  before  which  incense  smoked  and 
sacrifices  were  offered  !  The  spade  of  the 
archaeologist,  which  to-day  casts  out  the  dead 
relics  of  the  past,  shows  that  the  things  which 
accompanied  the  gods  of  these  various  "  ites  " 
once  inhabiting  Syria  were  as  morally  filthy  as 


62  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

the  extant  relics  of  Asiatic  heathenism  seen 
by  travelers  within  a  generation  past  in  Japan, 
and  two  generations  ago  in  India. 

While  Solomon  lived,  the  dreadful  influence 
of  his  example,  while  bad  enough,  could  not  in 
one  lifetime  be  followed  by  many  of  the  city 
dwellers.  Yet  the  shamefully  large  number 
of  idolatrous  and  morally  tainted  women  in 
the  harem  was  like  a  mass  of  water  kept  back 
only  temporarily  by  a  weak  dam.  His  death, 
however,  was  the  signal  for  a  moral  disaster  of 
which  the  Conemaugh  calamity  furnishes  the 
analogy  in  the  natural  world.  The  floodgates 
of  iniquity  were  opened  upon  Jerusalem  on 
the  breaking  up  of  the  great  royal  harem, 
after  the  secession  had  made  impossible,  by 
the  curtailment  of  revenue,  the  continued  main- 
tenance of  a  vast  seraglio.  Of  the  awful  ef- 
fect upon  city  life,  of  this  flood  of  iniquity  let 
loose,  the  book  of  Proverbs  especially  gives 
striking  proofs. 

That  Solomon  himself  personally  deserted 
utterly  the  worship  of  Jehovah  for  these  di- 
vinities we  do  not  gather  from  the  record,  nor 
believe.  That  he  was  spiritually  a  traitor  to 
his  God  in  thus  lending  aid  and  comfort  to 
Jehovah's  enemies,  and  of  indirectly  assisting 
in  these  enormities,  is  certain.  With  this  sin 
God  charged  him  and  threatened  punishment 
upon  him  for  it. 


HISTORIC  CHARACTERS  IN  THE  POEM.       63 

Within  an  historical  framework,  as  in  the 
books  of  the  Kings,  the  Author  of  the  Bible 
has  set  a  mirror,  into  which  we  in  this  age  of 
American  prosperity  and  amazing  wealth  do 
well  to  look.  Within  the  poetical  framework 
of  the  Song  of  Songs  we  believe  he  has  set 
the  contrast  of  chaste,  pure  love,  maintaining 
itself  unspotted  against  the  blandishments  of 
a  sensualist.  It  is  highly  probable  that  the 
Canticle  had  an  historical  basis  in  an  episode 
in  Solomon's  time,  and  that  out  of  this  an 
inspired  poet  was  impelled  to  write  a  master- 
piece expressive  of  the  deepest  emotions  of  the 
Hebrew  heart.  In  this  poem  sensuality  is 
scorned  and  rejected,  and  pure  love  glorified 
and  its  seat  discerned  in  the  bosom  of  God. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE. 

One  of  the  most  profound  changes  in  the 
consciousness  of  the  people  of  Israel  was 
wrought  by  the  institution  of  monarchy.  Hith- 
erto the  nation  had  been,  according  to  the  prev- 
alent faith,  under  the  direct  government  of 
God.  Her  judges,  ]Driests,  and  prophets  were 
ministers  of  Jehovah  who  assisted  in  worship 
and  in  the  maintenance  of  the  institutions  of 
social  order  and  religion.  The  innovation  of 
a  monarchy  and  centralized  government  with 
religious  services  pointing  to  ultimate  restric- 
tion at  Jerusalem,  the  king  claiming  to  be 
God's  vicegerent,  caused  a  profound  change 
in  the  feelings  of  Jehovah's  people.  At  first 
all  probably  welcomed  the  new  order,  and  dur- 
ing the  first  few  years  of  the  sunshine  of  royal 
popularity  and  the  glare  of  worldly  prosperity 
there  was  little  or  no  protest.  When,  however, 
the  behavior  of  the  monarch  scandalized  the 
people,  and  the  woes  foretold  by  Samuel  fell 
upon  them,  when  the  taxes  and  galling  bur- 
dens  began    to   press    upon    neck  and  purse, 


POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE.     65 

there  were  great  searchings  of  heart.  Mon- 
archy meant  decay  of  good  old  customs,  the 
spoiling  of  home,  monopoly  of  land,  and  gen- 
eral poverty.  This  clearly  seen,  there  was 
first  reaction  and  then  rebellion,  followed  by 
division  of  the  kingdom.  Solomon's  empire 
was  short-lived,  repeating  in  this  respect  the 
general  precedent  and  course  of  empire  in 
Asia. 

Then  ensued  a  period  when  the  memory  of 
the  glory  of  Solomon  was  still  bright,  while 
that  of  his  burdens  no  longer  felt  was  weak. 
The  perspective  of  years  softened  the  out- 
lines of  remembered  events.  While  the  great 
achievements  of  the  nation  under  their  mighty 
king  took  on  the  glory  and  color  of  sunset 
upon  the  mountain-peaks,  the  private  sins  and 
public  oppressions  were  lost  in  the  shadows  of 
the  valley.  Oblivion  covered  with  its  purple 
that  which  once  caused  smart.  By  the  peo- 
ple living  in  the  later  period  of  continuing 
monarchy,  Solomon  was  awarded  reverential 
silence,  or  his  moral  obliquity  ignored.  At 
least,  the  sting  of  bitterness  was  extracted 
from  the  memory.  The  ruins  of  history  were 
mantled  with  the  ivy  of  poetry,  and  the  scars 
of  devastation  were  covered  with  the  flowery 
luxuriance  of  figurative  language.  While  Sol- 
omon's immediate  successors  are  never  once 


66  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

mentioned  in  the  poetical  books  of  the  Bible, 
he  himself  is  made  the  chief  personage  in  the 
Canticle,  and  in  others  is  a  notable  figure. 

Hence  the  great  contrast  between  the  bald 
prose  of  the  books  of  the  Kings  and  the  ex- 
uberant poetry  of  the  Canticle.  The  prophet- 
scribe  who  compiled  the  Kings  gives  the  un- 
varnished facts,  the  priest-writer  of  Chronicle 
eulogizes  Solomon  and  dwells  in  the  glory  of 
the  temple  and  the  royal  gifts,  with  measure- 
ments and  mathematical  figures,  though  the 
human  interest  is  vastly  less  than  in  Kings. 
The  Ephraimite  singer  of  the  Song  of  Songs 
invests  everything  with  a  poetic  glow.  In  the 
exuberant  tropical  language  of  the  Orient,  all 
things  fair  in  heaven  and  on  earth  are  sum- 
moned to  picture  the  environment  and  to  in- 
terpret the  emotions  of  the  royal  admirer  and 
the  faithful  lovers,  while  the  crowning  motive 
of  the  piece  and  culmination  of  the  thought  is 
linked  to  the  name  of  Jehovah  himself. 

How  did  the  Song  of  Songs  come  to  be 
written  .-'  Did  poets  in  the  ancient  world,  in- 
spired or  uninspired,  strive,  for  original  con- 
ceptions, and  attempt  to  create  plots,  scenes, 
and  characters,  as  is  done  in  modern  drama  or 
novel } 

If  anything  seems  established  by  close  study 
of  the  literature  and  life  of  the  ancient  world, 


POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE.     6? 

it  is  this  :  that  the  abstract  invention  of  a 
character,  or  a  story  apart  from  some  basis  of 
fact,  by  a  poet ;  or,  the  utterance  of  a  prophecy 
having  no  vital  connection  with  the  prophet's 
own  life,  times,  and  experience,  is  in  the  He- 
brew Scriptures  unknown.  In  either  case,  of 
poem  or  prophecy,  there  must  be  a  starting 
point  of  actual  occurrence.  The  anecdote  was 
the  seed  of  poem,  psalm,  or  prophecy.  Liter- 
ally, it  may  be  said,  the  poetry,  fiction,  drama, 
and  prophetic  "  burden "  of  the  Bible  is 
"founded  on  fact." 

By  what  particular  historical  occurrence  the 
Song  of  Songs  was  suggested,  or  to  what  event 
it  is  directly  related,  we  do  not  know  with 
certainty.  Using  the  word  "  anecdote  "  in  its 
literal  and  historic  sense,  the  conjecture  is 
not  unreasonable  that  the  composer  of  the 
Canticle,  like  the  poet  or  poets  of  the  book  of 
Job  who  used  the  anecdote  concerning  the 
"  man  of  Uz,"  has  heard  the  story  of  Abishag 
and  Solomon's  desire  to  win  her  for  himself, 
or  at  least  sees  behind  his  murder  of  Adonijah 
the  basis  of  a  drama  in  real  life.  Thereupon, 
with  this  incident  as  a  suggestive  starting 
point,  and  with  exquisite  literary  art,  he  con- 
structs the  cantata  which  so  clearly  sets  in 
contrast  pure  and  innocent  love  with  sensual 
passion  and  unholy  ambition.     Let  us  look  at 


68  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

the  portico  of  this  temple  of  Hebrew  poetry, 
so  full  of  strength  and  of  beauty.  In  the 
superscription  of  the  writing  we  have  the  an- 
nouncement or  argument,  —  "The  Song  of 
Songs,  which  is  Solomon's."  It  is  the  chief 
song,  the  noblest  of  all,  because  its  theme  is 
the  noblest  passion,  love.  As  God,  the  King 
of  kings,  dwells  in  the  heaven  of  heavens,  in 
the  true  holy  of  holies,  and  is  God  of  gods, 
Lord  of  lords  ;  as  Canaan  was  the  "  servant 
of  servants;"  as  life  to  the  writer  of  Ecclesi- 
astes  was  vanity  of  vanities  ;  as  love  to  our 
Heavenly  Father  should  be  in  our  heart  of 
hearts  :  so  the  song  whose  burden  is  love  is 
the  Song  of  songs.  The  Bible  itself  is  the 
Canticle  of  God's  love  to  us,  for  God  is  love. 
Even  the  New  Testament,  though  its  lan- 
guage is  Greek,  contains  this  Hebrew  idiom, 
for  "salvation  is  of  the  Jews;"  and  Paul  the 
Hebrew,  though  using  Greek,  calls  himself  a 
"Hebrew  of  the  Hebrews." 

Of  the  book  now  under  examination,  the 
title  is  Shir  hash  Shirim,  or  Song  of  Songs; 
yet  it  is  quite  possible  that  this  Hebrew  writ- 
ing when  first  published  had  no  title.  This 
was  the  case  with  most  of  the  scriptures  of 
the  Old  Testament,  the  names  of  which  as 
now  used  came  into  use  much  later  than  the 
time   of   their   composition.      In    this   respect 


POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE-     69 

they  were  like  the  great  vokime  ranking  next 
in  world-wide  popularity  to  the  Bible,  and 
which  all  Christians  love,  supposed  to  have 
been  written  by  Thomas  a  Kempis.  It  is 
known  under  several  titles,  which  take  their 
form  from  words  or  phrases  in  the  book  itself, 
such  as  "  The  Imitation  of  Christ,"  or  "  On 
the  Following  of  Christ " ;  though  in  Japan 
the  Jesuit  missionaries  translated  it  under  the 
title  "Contempt  of  the  World."  The  head- 
line over  the  fifth  of  the  poetical  books  of  the 
Bible,  —  "The  Song  of  Songs  which  is  Solo- 
mon's,"—  the  only  line  of  prose  in  the  form  of 
the  book  as  we  have  it,  is  so  evidently  a  ver- 
sicle  added  as  a  title  by  a  hand  later  than  the 
author's,  that  in  the  Revision  of  1884  the  old 
heading  of  the  page  in  the  former  English  ver- 
sions has  been  discarded  and  the  name,  The 
Song  of  Songs,  only,  printed  as  the  title  to  be 
used  by  the  people.  In  this  matter  the  re- 
visers have  followed  the  best  critical  editors 
of  the  Hebrew  text.  The  study  of  philology 
teaches  us  to  pay  closest  attention  to  the 
smallest  words,  for  often  these  little  "  hooks 
and  eyes  "  of  speech  tell  great  stories,  and  are 
as  true  evidences  of  time  and  change  as  the 
geological  imprints  once  made  in  clay  and  now 
hardened  for  the  ages  in  stone.  The  little  pro- 
noun "which  "  in  the  title,  The  Song  of  Songs 


70  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

which  is  of,  or  about  Solomon,  is  different  in 
form  to  the  extent  of  several  letters  from  the 
same  pronoun  {sJie)  which  is  used  in  every 
other  place  in  the  Canticle.  In  the  head-line, 
added  doubtless  long  after  the  poem  v^ras 
written,  it  is  asher,  a  word  rarely  used  in  titles, 
even  of  the  Psalms,  and  containing  three  con- 
sonants and  two  vowels  ;  in  the  body  of  the 
book,  the  pronoun  "  which  "  is  represented  in 
Hebrew  by  a  word  of  one  consonant  letter. 
Some  scholars  think  the  words  "which  is  Sol- 
omon's" are  part  of  the  text  by  the  author  who 
intended  to  imitate  the  style  of  Solomon,  or 
to  project  himself  into  Solomonic  times  and 
sphere  of  thought. 

Our  word  Canticles,  more  properly  Canticle, 
is  from  the  Latin  "  Canticum  canticorum." 
Luther  called  it  "  Das  Hohelied,"  and  a 
French  expositor  crowns  it  as  "the  Eternal 
Song." 

Our  understanding  of  the  poem  is  much 
facilitated  by  constant  reference  to  the  histori- 
cal books,  for  often  these  preserve  for  us  the 
figurative  expression  which  the  contemporaries 
of  Solomon  used  to  denote  the  objects  of  their 
admiration  or  censure.  Thus,  in  regard  to  the 
person  and  appurtenances  of  the  king,  we  have 
in  chapter  iv.  8  of  the  Song  references  which 
might,  without   the   explanation   in  Kings,  be 


POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE.      /I 

interpreted  literally  of  zoology  instead  of  met- 
aphorically of  the  king's  seat  and  companions. 
The  Shulamite's  lover,  in  urging  her  to  go 
with  him,  mentions  the  various  royal  resi- 
dences, and  bids  her  to  escape  with  him  away 
from  them  and  from  Solomon.  Besides  Leba- 
non, Amana,  Shenir,  and  Hermon,  he  speaks 
of  "the  lions'  den,"  and  "the  mountains  of 
the  leopards."  Are  we  to  think  here  of  wild 
beasts,  live  quadrupeds  noted  for  their  claws 
and  teeth  ;  or,  of  the  lion-supported  throne  of 
Solomon  and  the  court  in  which  his  courtiers 
dwell  ? 

In  both  Kings  and  Chronicles  (i  Kings 
X.  18-20  ;  2  Chron.  ix.  18,  19)  we  read  of  the 
great  throne,  of  ivory  overlaid  with  the  finest 
gold,  with  six  steps  leading  to  it  and  "  two 
lions  standing  beside  the  stays."  In  other 
parts  of  the  sacred  writings,  kings  are  styled 
"lions,"  and  the  courtiers  surrounding  a  great 
monarch  are  called  by  the  names  of  powerful 
beasts.  In  the  popular  language  of  a  distant 
province  the  throne-room  with  its  fourteen  lions 
would  be  called  "the  lions'  den." 

The  pet  names  which  the  faithful  girl  gives 
her  lover  are  all  poetical,  and  in  accord  with 
the  richness  of  oriental  metaphor.  To  her,  his 
name  is  "  spikenard,"  as  the  king's  is  to  the 
harem  ladies  "ointment  poured  forth  "  —  as  a 


72  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

precious  alabaster  perfume-bottle  broken  and 
poured  upon  the  head  of  the  guest,  or  crushed 
in  a  napkin  every  piece  of  which  is  thencefor- 
ward a  bearer  of  sweet  odors.  By  none  of  the 
senses,  more  than  the  particular  one  of  smell, 
is  the  memory  more  deeply  stirred  and  asso- 
ciation recalled.  (2  Cor.  ii,  1-16.)  He  whom 
her  soul  loveth  is  a  neck-bag,  or  vial  of  per- 
fume, a  bundle  of  myrrh  which  she  wears  on 
her  bosom  between  her  heart  and  her  gar- 
ments. As  Job,  or  Job's  wife,  named  one  of 
his  daughters  Keren-happuch,  or  toilet-box,  so 
names  of  things  liked  by  ladies  were  often 
applied  to  their  human  favorites.  As  a  cluster 
of  rich  yellow  cypress  flowers  at  her  girdle, 
also,  so  is  her  absent  beloved.  Though  warm 
and  ardent,  her  language  and  images  as  well  as 
her  thought  are  immaculately  chaste  and  art- 
lessly innocent. 

In  the  maiden's  speech  we  find  an  amazing 
wealth  of  imagery,  and  her  native  tongue  is  as 
full  of  the  natural  poetry  of  the  Hebrews  as 
the  plain  of  Sharon  is  full  of  daisies.  Many 
of  the  old  words  of  the  language  are  in  them- 
selves latent  poems,  but  on  her  lips  a  new 
beauty  is  born  into  many  of  them.  As  a  vine- 
yard consists  of  cultivated  or  prepared  land, 
and  is  a  place  of  beauty  as  well  as  of  work,  so 
she  calls  her  own  person  "a  vineyard."     Nag- 


POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE.     y$ 

lected  indeed  it  has  been,  as  her  sunburned 
skin  shows,  and  as  she  acknowledges  with 
apology  in  the  presence  of  the  critical  court 
beauties.  The  contrast  however  between  the 
references  in  the  first  and  the  last  chapter  is 
striking.  Pure  and  uninvaded,  scathless  from 
the  fire  of  trial,  she  is  her  own  and  not  the 
tempter's,  and  in  presence  of  her  husband  and 
her  friends  in  the  final  scene  she  exclaims, 
"  My  vineyard  which  is  mine  is  before  me," 
she  speaks  with  the  exultation  of  victory. 

Another  lively  poetic  image  underlies  her 
reference  to  her  dark  complexion.  As  the 
"eyes  of  the  sun  "  are  spoken  of  by  Nathan 
in  his  speech  to  David,  so  the  poet  makes  her 
say  that  the  sun,  which  is  here  feminine,  has 
"gazed"  steadily  upon  her — like  a  woman 
whose  one  piercing  black  eye  looks  out  from 
behind  her  veil.  In  other  parts  of  the  Bible 
the  morning  "twinkles,"  and  the  moon  "looks 
forth"  as  the  "faithful  witness  of  the  sky." 
So  also  the  word  for  mid-day  is  plural,  or 
rather  dual ;  the  noons  being  literally  the 
"double  light,"  when  the  sun's  rays  of  the 
morning  and  of  the  afternoon  blend  fn  an  in- 
tensity that  drives  man  and  beast  to  seek 
shade  or  single  light. 

To  the  pure-minded  lover,  the  Shulamite 
is  lovely  with  virginal  modesty  and  acquired 


74  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

womanly  virtues.  She  is  a  "  lily  among 
thorns,"  a  "dove  in  the  cleft  of  the  rocks,"  an 
"  inclosed  garden,"  a  "  fountain  sealed."  She 
is  his  "sister,"  his  "betrothed."  Unlike  the 
members  of  Solomon's  miscellaneous  herd,  she 
is  "  one."  In  her  unassailable  purity  she  is  a 
well  of  living  water,  a  limpid  mountain  brook  of 
Lebanon.  In  her  own  self-deprecating  words 
she  is  "black" — the  word  being  the  same 
as  that  applied  to  the  turbid  Nile,  —  but  in  his 
eyes  she  is  clear-skinned  and  white  as  the 
torrent's  foam.  In  her  accomplishments  and 
charms  she  is  "a  garden  of  spices,"  a  sweet 
singer  dwelling  in  the  gardens. 

As  to  the  one  beloved  of  the  Shulamite,  who 
in  the  Hebrew  is  invariablv  addressed  in  one 
form  of  words  not  used  of  Solomon,  he  seems 
in  his  life  and  ways  to  be  more  than  of  earthly 
mould,  of  almost  angelic  habits  of  innocence, 
purity,  and  high  communion  of  soul  with  things 
rare,  precious,  and  unearthly.  He  is  an  ideal 
personage  in  her  eyes.  His  dwelling-places 
are  fields  of  lilies,  gardens  of  balsam,  and 
mountains  of  spices.  He  is  beautiful  in  body, 
wise  in  mind,  and  free  as  the  hinds  of  the  field. 
He  is  her  leader,  teacher,  and  exemplar.  In 
the  ardor  of  her  affection  she  clothes  him  with 
ideal  graces  which  all  the  splendors  of  royal 
blandishments  cannot  for  a  moment  eclipse.    If 


POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE.     75 

in  this  book  there  be  found  a  true  type  of 
Christ,  it  is  the  shepherd-lover,  and  not  the 
sensual  king. 

In  the  beloved's  addresses,  chaste,  pure,  and 
tender,  natural  images  are  abundantly  reflected. 
He  never  visibly  appears  on  the  scene  until 
the  last  crowning  event,  and  in  all  the  others 
the  Shulamite  seSs  him  only  in  trance  or  vision. 
As  in  the  spiritual  drama  of  Job,  where  the 
one  most  talked  about  and  honored  is  God,  not 
man,  he  appears  on  the  scene  only  at  the  very 
last. 

In  Solomon's  addresses  to  the  woman  of  his 
quest,  whose  innocence  and  inapproachability 
baffle  him,  one  easily  discovers  a  marked  con- 
trast in  thought,  imagery,  and  language  from 
those  employed  by  the  shepherd.  The  royal 
voluptuary's  conceptions  are  not  elevated,  his 
metaphors  are  sometimes  heavy,  and  most  of 
his  images  are  those  borrowed  from  the  artifi- 
cial life  of  cities,  courts,  and  stables.  His  lan- 
guage is  less  that  of  the  impassioned  lover  than 
the  ambitious  seeker  who  does  not  expect  to 
be  finally  baffled ;  it  is  highly  rhetorical,  and 
sometimes  in  exquisite  literary  form.  Only  in 
the  final  scene  of  his  attentions,  however,  does 
he  seem  to  speak  in  terms  which  verge  upon 
impropriety.  Indeed,  except  this  very  brief 
speech    of    Solomon    to    the    dancing-girl    of 


76  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

Mahanaim,  the  writer  declares,  after  earnest 
study,  that  he  discovers  nothing  in  discord 
with  purity  of  thought  and  sound  morality  in 
all  the  Canticle. 

To  Solomon  the  new  inmate  of  his  palace  is 
like  a  mare,  her  cheeks  and  neck  remind  him 
of  jewels,  her  neck  recalls  the  armory-tower, 
he  compares  her  to  the  rival  cities  of  Tirzah 
and  Jerusalem.  His  view  of  nature  is  that  of 
a  cultivated  critic  who  enjoys  the  landscape 
best  when  it  is  full  of  the  triumphs  of  civiliza- 
tion. In  chapter  vii.  the  description  of  the 
dancer's  person  by  the  women  is  done  with  a 
detail  that  is  more  pleasing  to  oriental  than  to 
western  taste. 

The  height  of  exuberance  of  figurative  lan- 
guage is  reached  in  the  final  scene  and  last 
chapter,  where  the  obscurity  or,  we  may  say, 
profundity  of  the  allusions  suggests  the  enig- 
mas so  characteristic  of  Solomon's  age,  and  of 
which  the  orientals  are  yet  so  fond.  Here 
love  is  a  fire  unquenchable  by  stream  or  flood, 
equalling  the  grave  in  its  irresistible  power. 
Here  the  little  sister  of  undeveloped  figure  is 
warned  to  choose  between  being  a  wall  or  a 
door.  The  alternative  prizes  of  a  lintel  of 
cedar  or  of  a  turret  of  silver  is  set  before  her. 
A  marriage  with  a  plain  man,  perhaps  old  and 
harsh,  stern  and  severe,  or  even  the  sale  into 


POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE,    yy 

a  harem  against  her  will ;  or,  on  the  other  hand, 
honorable  and  crowned  marriage  to  her  own 
chosen  lover,  is  here  indicated.  The  chief 
treasure  among  the  wedding  gifts  being  the 
horn  of  silver  which  ornamented  the  bride's 
head,  and  from  which  her  veil  depended,  the 
"palace  "  or  turret  of  silver  would,  should  she 
prove  discreet,  modest,  and  faithful,  be  built 
upon  her,  and  her  "horn  "  be  "exalted  "  with 
the  honor  desired  by  all  Hebrew  daughters. 
The  vineyard  of  Solomon  at  Baal-hamon  had 
doubtless  its  counterpart  in  actual  land,  vines, 
grapes,  or  olives,  and  husbandmen  and  rent ; 
but  throughout  the  poem  the  vineyard  which 
she  neglected  was  her  own,  and  "my  vineyard 
which  is  mine  is  before  me"  was  her  own  per- 
son—  her  virgin  body,  unbought,  unsold. 

Apart  from  the  human  actors  in  the  Canticle 
and  the  figurative  language  applied  to  them 
in  names  of  love  and  fear,  there  is  a  rich  sym- 
bolism pertaining  to  places  and  things.  The 
mountains  of  Lebanon,  rich  as  they  were  in 
balsam  trees  and  cedars,  were  the  real  types  of 
those  "  mountains  of  spices  "  which  were  prob- 
ably never  seen  on  sea  or  land  but  grew  in 
ideal  regions.  The  mountains  of  Bether,  or 
separation,  refer  probably  to  the  everlasting 
hills  wrinkled  with  valleys  or  gorged  with  ra- 
vines,  making  division  and  distance  between 


^8  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

lover  and  loved.  "  Mountains  of  myrrh  "  and 
"hills  of  frankincense"  were  not  only  the 
ranges  that  strike  the  view  in  northern  Israel, 
but  typified  probably  also  the  beauties  of  the 
human  form,  or  gardens  found  in  lovers'  bowers. 
We  find  in  Solomon's  last  speech  palm-trees  and 
boughs,  clusters  of  "grapes"  and  apples  that 
grow  only  in  poetry,  and  on  the  fairest  work 
of  God  in  that  human  form  which,  in  the  poe- 
try of  Genesis,  he  made  of  a  rib  instead  of  the 
dust  of  the  ground. 

Of  places  we  easily  recognize  those  of  his- 
toric name  and  reality,  but  are  there  not  others 
to  be  discovered  on  no  map,  and  existent  only 
in  the  geography  of  imagination  .-'  Archaeolo- 
gists and  excavators  in  the  Hebrew  texts  have 
sought  in  vain  to  locate  Baal-Hamon,  or  the 
Baal  of  Multitude.  Possibly  such  a  locality 
did  really  exist  in  one  of  the  "fat  valleys  of 
Ephraim,"  and  its  name  if  not  a  mis-reading 
for  Baal-Hermon  may  perhaps  be  found  cor- 
rupted into  the  "  Balamon  "  of  the  apocryphal 
book  of  Judith,  chapter  viii.  3.  It  seems  more 
likely,  however,  that  the  name  is  a  coinage 
of  the  brain  of  the  poet,  and  to  go  after  it 
might  be  like  seeking  in  England  John  Bun- 
yan's  Vanity  Fair  and  other  places  of  immortal 
note.  So  with  "  the  lions'  dens  "  and  ^'  the 
mountains  of  leopards,"  as  we  have  suggested. 


POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE.      "/() 

In  the  symbolism  of  flowers,  and  recondite 
allusions  to  the  sentiment  associated  with 
trees,  fruits,  perfumes,  and  other  delectable  ob- 
jects, in  metaphor  and  trope,  the  poet  is  lavish. 
The  sun  looks  on  the  maiden  to  tan  brown  her 
face,  the  morning  peeps  forth,  the  gazelles  are 
creatures  to  take  solemn  oath  by,  love  is  a  liv- 
ing creature  with  a  will  not  to  be  lightly  awak- 
ened, the  state  car  of  Solomon  is  paved  with 
love.  The  Shulamite's  plants  and  orchard  of 
pomegranates,  with  all  the  costly  spices,  are 
emblems  of  mental  and  moral  graces  and  traits 
of  temperament.  She  is  his  garden,  the  joys 
of  her  love  are  his  honeycomb  and  honey,  his 
wine  and  milk,  making  a  feast  of  joy.  Yet  she 
is  "  not  too  bright  or  good  for  human  nature's 
daily  food."  The  apple-tree,  which  is  among 
the  trees  of  the  wood  what  the  beloved  is  to 
his  loving  betrothed  among  the  young  men,  is 
the  symbol  of  love  and  affection.  Its  beauty, 
usefulness,  fragrance,  its  delicious  fruit  and 
delightful  shadow,  the  memories  that  cluster 
around  it  as  a  playground  and  even  as  a  birth- 
place in  the  East,  where  life,  even  in  its  begin- 
ning, as  well  as  toil  and  joy,  is  in  the  open  air, 
make  it  a  favorite  with  the  poets.  Probably  at 
the  era  of  Solomon  this  Persian  tree  was  first 
introduced  into  Palestine  ;  and,  becoming  a 
part  of  the  life  of  the  people,  it  formed  a  strik- 


8o  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

ing  object  in  the  landscape  and  a  useful  sym- 
bol to  the  poets.  This  fruit  of  fruits  is  also 
placed  poetically  in  the  eyeball,  and  hung  on 
the  forbidden  tree  in  Eden.  Possibly,  however, 
the  apple-tree  of  the  Hebrews  is  more  correctly 
an  apricot,  or  possibly  a  quince. 

Contrast  between  urban  and  rural  life,  to 
the  advantage  of  the  latter,  is  one  of  the 
notable  points  in  the  poem.  In  the  country 
the  maid  of  Shunem  has  all  her  joys  ;  in  the 
city,  her  woes,  sorrows,  accidents,  and  peculiar 
troubles.  Evidently  it  is  the  purpose  of  the 
poet  to  paint  the  delights  of  out-door  life  amid 
the  beauties  of  nature,  compelling  contrast  to 
the  dangers  and  temptations  of  the  city.  In 
no  book  of  the  Bible  is  the  lesson  that  God 
made  the  country  while  man  made  the  town 
so  clearly  illustrated.  In  no  other  are  the 
diverse  modes  of  life  put  in  juxtaposition,  the 
one  to  be  feared,  and  the  other  to  be  desired. 
Like  the  teacher  of  Nazareth,  who  perhaps 
never  spent  a  night  in  Jerusalem  except  that 
one  of  sorrow  before  his  crucifixion,  and  who 
avoided  the  city  for  the  country,  the  Shulam- 
ite  ever  looks  longingly  upon  the  fields  and 
hills. 

Cities  are  the  graves  of  health  and  strength, 
the  destroyers  of  nerve  and  vigor,  and  the 
waste  of   energy  needs  constant  replenishing 


POETIC  BACKGROUND  OF  THE  CANTICLE.     8 1 

from  the  country,  where  life  is  more  natural. 
The  demands  which  civilization  makes  upon 
the  physical  frame  could  never  be  supplied 
from  the  cities,  and  except  for  the  country  the 
loss  could  not  be  remedied. 

In  one  respect,  at  least,  the  era  of  the  new 
empire  in  Israel  was  noticeably  like  the  cen- 
tury in  which  we  live.  It  was  the  age  of 
cities.  Life  began  to  be  concentrated  within 
streets  and  walls.  The  demand  for  labor  and 
talent  which  the  newly  formed  systems  of 
manufactures,  public  works,  and  commerce  re- 
quired drew  large  numbers  of  the  young  men 
and  women  away  from  field  and  viney:ird,  olive 
garden  and  village,  to  the  cities,  and  especially 
to  the  capital,  Jerusalem.  That  this  was  not 
an  unmixed  good,  but  in  many  respects  a  pos- 
itive evil,  the  subsequent  history  of  the  nation 
shows. 

The  Song  of  Songs,  however,  is  a  bright 
picture  of  a  true  servant  of  God  reared  amid 
rural  and  even  rustic  scenes,  who  preserves 
her  character  and  religion  amid  the  luxury  and 
glamour  of  the  great  metropolis.  In  this 
respect  the  poem  is  one  of  timely  interest  and 
present  application  to  the  tens  of  thousands 
of  youths  who  in  our  land  have  left  their  child- 
hood's rural  homes  to  seek  excitement,  fame, 
or  fortune  in  the  teeming  cities.     May  the  ex- 


82  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

ample  of  the  incorruptible  maiden  of  Shunem 
be  to  them  a  beacon  of  light  and  inspiration, 
while  her  temper  ever  remains  a  warning 
against  that  "  hardening  of  the  heart  which 
brings  irreverence  for  the  dreams  of  youth." 

What  happened  to  the  Shulamite  comes  to 
pass  in  the  history  of  almost  every  young  man 
and  young  woman.  Especially  in  a  country  of 
endless  possibilities  like  our  own  is  this  true. 
She  was  placed  between  opposite  attractions 
that  represented  the  true  and  the  false  ideals 
of  life.  Should  she  choose  glory  or  duty } 
Should  she  live  with  conscience,  religion,  sim- 
plicity of  life,  purity,  and  be  faithful  to  her 
word  and  first  love  .'  Or,  for  ambition's  sake, 
for  an  "  establishment  "  in  Jerusalem  sell  her- 
self .''  Happy  they  who  by  decision  and  un- 
swerving loyalty  to  the  ideals  of  duty  keep 
conscience  clear  and  enjoy  peace  of  mind  ! 


CHAPTER  V. 

DRAMATIC    STRUCTURE  OF    THE  SONG  OF    SONGS. 

The  Song  of  Songs  is  the  only  book  in  the 
library  of  the  sacred  writings  which  consists 
wholly  of  poetry  and  conversation.  All  the 
other  poetical  books,  even  the  Book  of  Job 
which  is  a  drama  of  the  spirit,  contain  prose 
diction  in  the  form  of  introduction,  subject- 
matter,  explanation,  or  epilogue,  in  which  the 
author  himself  speaks.  In  the  Song  of  Songs, 
however,  the  author  is  entirely  silent  as  to  in- 
formation given,  or  utterances  directly  made 
from  himself.  There  are  no  voices  but  those 
of  the  dramatis  personce,  the  characters  them- 
selves. 

No  other  book  of  the  Bible  in  the  older  Eng- 
lish versions  stood  so  much  in  need  of  the 
reviser's  touch  as  that  of  the  Canticle.  In 
the  Revised  Version,  the  five  thousand  words 
are  arranged  with  some  reference  to  their 
order  as  poetry ;  and  as  dialogue,  soliloquy, 
chorus,  or  conversation.  It  may  now  be  read 
intelligently  by  the  general  reader.  Nor  does 
it  now  seem    presumptuous  audacity  even  to 


84  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

talk   of    its  consummate  form  as    a  work    of 
literary  art. 

What  is  the  form  of  this  masterpiece  of 
Hebrew  poetry  ?  Is  it  a  pastoral,  epic,  lyric, 
cantata,  or  drama  ?  Or,  is  there  any  one  word 
which,  with  honest  reference  to  our  scanty 
knowledge  of  its  origin,  purpose,  and  use  in 
ancient  times,  will  accurately  describe  it  ?  This 
is  a  question  of  great  interest  to  scholars,  who 
have  expended  much  learning  upon  this  point ; 
and  research  and  controversy  concerning  the 
corollary  question  whether  the  drama  existed 
among  the  Hebrews.  In  every  Asiatic  race, 
from  Japan  to  Phoenicia,  we  find  dramatic  ex- 
pression in  some  form  ;  but  in  none  of  the 
Semitic  races  did  this  reach  the  point  of  devel- 
opment represented  by  the  theatre. 

Some  assert  that  there  is  such  an  innate 
estrangement  in  the  Hebrew  genius  from 
everything  of  the  nature  of  plastic  art,  that 
even  dramatic  writings  would  be  impossible 
among  them.  Both  the  actor  on  the  stage 
and  the  composer  of  the  drama  must,  accord- 
ing to  the  measure  of  his  success,  divest  him- 
self of  his  own  personality  and  enter  into  that 
of  others.  He  must  have  a  sort  of  double  con- 
sciousness. He  must  move  himself  with  pas- 
sions which  are  not  his  own,  and  identify  him- 
self with  the  soul  of   others.     It  is  asserted 


DRAMA  TIC  S  TR  UC  TURE.  8  5 

that  the  Hebrews  were  not  able  to  do  this,  and 
hence  divine  inspiration,  which  moved  the 
penmen  of  the  Holy  Scriptures  to  utter  their 
God-breathed  wisdom  in  almost  every  other 
form  of  literary  expression,  found  no  instru- 
ment in  the  drama.  Even  the  very  thought 
of  the  pure  drama,  or  of  dramatic  writing  in 
the  Bible,  shocks  the  minds  of  those  educated 
to  believe  that  plastic  art  and  inspiration  are 
incompatible,  like  the  union  of  Christ  and 
Belial. 

What  foundation  of  truth  or  fact  underlies 
such  notions  ?  Does  not  a  critical,  that  is,  a 
thoroughly  honest  and  unbiased,  searching  of 
the  Scriptures,  according  to  the  command  of 
Christ,  modify  such  presuppositions  ?  Is  it 
not  true  that  the  Hebrews  were  especially 
noted  for  their  love  of  symbols,  and  that  "  sym- 
bolism went  the  length  of  mimicry,"  that  the 
prophets  often  did  enter  into  the  feelings  and 
the  very  personality  of  others  in  remote  times 
and  places  ?  Was  not  this,  strictly  speaking, 
dramatic  action  ?  From  a  purely  literary 
point  of  view,  is  not  Isaiah's  creation  of  the 
Servant  of  Jehovah  one  of  the  boldest  strokes 
of  dramatic  genius  ?  Was  it  without  point 
that  Jesus  called  attention  to  the  mimic  stage- 
play,  the  private  theatricals  of  the  children  in 
the  market-place    (Matthew  xi.  17),  and    that 


86  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

he  branded  the  Pharisees,  the  consummate 
mask-wearers  of  his  day,  as  "stage-actors," 
that  is,  hypocrites  ? 

It  is  true,  as  a  study  of  Hebrew  Hterature 
shows,  that  the  Scriptures  emanating  from  Ju- 
dah  or  Southern  Israel  were  more  intensely 
spiritual  in  their  tone,  and  borrowed  less  their 
images  from  nature,  while  in  the  speech  and 
writings  of  the  prophets  and  poets  of  Ephraim 
or  Northern  Israel  there  was,  if  not  more  of 
dramatic  movement,  action,  life,  fire,  trope, 
metaphor,  and  picture  word,  a  closer  acquaint- 
ance and  sympathy  with  nature.  The  sacred 
land  of  Jehovah,  containing  "the  fat  valleys  of 
Ephraim  "  and  the  perennially  rich  plain  of 
Jezreel,  was  more  bountifully  dowered  with 
Nature's  gifts  in  the  north  than  in  the  south. 
The  Hebrew  in  northern  Israel  lived  not  next 
to  the  desert,  as  did  his  southern  brethren, 
but  in  a  more  fertile  region  and  nearer  to 
Phoenicia,  the  land  of  art  and  the  refinements 
of  civilization.  Further,  the  natural  scenery 
of  the  North  was  more  bold,  variegated,  and 
impressible  than  in  the  South,  where  sand 
and  bare  rocks  and  untimbercd  hills  prevailed. 
It  was  in  Ephraim  that  lyric  poetry  was  most 
cultivated  and  whence  arose  the  mightiest 
singers  and  poets.  It  was  Naphthali  that 
"gave  goodly  words."     It  was  in  the  North 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE.  8/ 

that  the  drama  had  a  place,  though  it  never 
developed  into  the  theatre. 

In  studying  further  the  dramatic  structure 
of  this  Bible  drama  of  pure  love,  we  do  not 
find  that  the  speakers  are  named  as  in  the 
Book  of  Job,  which  is  a  drama  of  the  soul's 
trials.  In  the  Canticle,  except  the  title,  there 
are  no  marks  at  beginning  or  ending,  such  as 
are  added  by  original  writers  or  later  editors 
and  title-makers  of  the  Psalms,  so  we  must 
look  to  internal  marks.  A  Swiss  cottage 
shows  us  its  plan  even  from  the  outside,  be- 
cause the  main  timbers  are  visible.  In  a  more 
elaborate  edifice,  however,  we  must  enter  and 
from  within  study  the  architect's  idea.  In  a 
modern  drama  help  is  given  to  the  reader  by 
divisions  and  sections,  by  the  initial  letters  of 
speakers,  and  versicles  usually  printed  in  ital- 
ics. All  these  are  lacking  in  the  Canticle. 
As  printed  in  a  disjointed,  butcher-like  way  in 
the  unrevised  versions,  with  swaddling-bands 
of  impertinent  chapter-headings  and  verse- 
divisions,  it  is  nearly  as  hard  to  recognize  the 
masterly  poetic  form  of  the  original  as  to  dis- 
cover the  pretty  lamb  of  the  meadow  in  the 
dressed  carcass  on  the  iron  hooks  of  the 
market  stall. 

On  the  contrary,  the  original  poem  in  the 
Hebrew  gives  by  unerring  marks  and  details 


88  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

of  anatomy  nearly  as  much  assistance  to  the 
reader  as  the  printed  helps  in  a  modern  book. 
The  Revised  Version  presents  a  much  bet- 
ter expression  of  this  part  of  the  Word  of  God 
than  the  old  form  which  is  marred  by  the 
mixing  together  of  commentators'  notes,  dog- 
matic interpretations,  and  traditions  of  Scribes 
and  Pharisees,  with  Holy  Scripture.  These 
notes  and  comments  contained  in  the  chapter- 
headings  are  intended  to  force  upon  the 
reader  the  interpretation  accepted  first  by  the 
Synagogue,  and  then  by  the  Church  from 
the  Synagogue.  In  a  way  that  scandalizes  an 
honest  reader  of  God's  Word,  they  thrust  a 
scheme  of  purely  human  invention  upon  the 
common  people,  who  thus  unwittingly  wear 
the  spectacles  provided  for  them  and  read  into 
the  Scriptures  what  the  rabbis  and  doctors  in- 
tended they  should.  In  other  words,  the  pub- 
lishers of  King  James's  version  of  the  Bible 
have  effectually,  for  the  vast  majority  of  read- 
ers, braved  the  warning  in  Revelation  xxii.  i8, 
and  added  "to  the  words  of  the  prophecy  of 
this  book."  In  removing,  for  most  people,  the 
possibility  of  reading  it  in  a  natural  way,  they 
have  also  taken  away  from  "  the  words  of  the 
prophecy  of  this  book."  How  men  of  the  re- 
formed or  Protestant  faith  have  so  long  sub- 
milted  to  this  dishonoring  of  the  Holy  Word 
is  hard  to  understand. 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE.  89 

The  Revisers  have  returned  to  right  prin- 
ciples in  setting  forth  a  new  English  version 
of  the  Word  of  God  as  contained  in  the  He- 
brew and  Greek  Scriptures.  They  have  swept 
utterly  away  many  of  the  old  titles  and  sub- 
scriptions, the  chapter  headings,  the  arbitrary 
verse  divisions,  and  have  restored  to  some- 
thing approaching  its  ancient  form  this 
matchless  poem  and  Bible  book  of  love.  In 
the  Revision  of  1884,  we  read  as  the  title,  in 
the  page-headings,  not  "The  Song  of  Solo- 
mon," nor  "  Solomon's  Song,"  but  "The  Song 
of  Songs." 

Further,  they  have  attempted  to  show  its 
poetic  structure,  with  the  dialogues  and  re- 
frain. One  who  endeavors  to  unlock  the 
meaning  of  this,  the  most  neglected  book  of 
Holy  Scripture,  has  now  his  greatest  ally  in 
the  English  Bible.  The  poetry,  the  dramatic 
element,  and  the  exquisite  literary  beauty  of 
this  Hebrew  drama  are  now  fairly  expressed 
in  a  volume  in  the  hands  of  the  people,  and 
therefore  accessible  to  all. 

Nor  is  this  arrangement  of  the  text  a  mere 
matter  of  opinion,  taste,  or  guess-work.  It  is 
determined  by  the  grammar  of  the  Hebrew 
language,  a  critical  study  of  which  furnishes 
the  scholar  with  clews  in  abundance.  It  is 
quite  easy   to   distinguish    in    any   paragraph 


90  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

whether  it  is  the  Shulamite  or  either  of  her 
suitors  that  is  speaking.  The  feminine  form 
of  verb,  adjective,  and  noun  in  each  case  re- 
veals the  maiden  as  the  speaker.  Her  GaHlean 
dialect  is  no  more  to  be  mistaken  than  was 
Peter's  in  the  high-priest's  hall  in  Jerusalem. 
The  addresses  of  the  ladies  of  the  harem  are 
easily  recognized.  They  call  her,  "fairest  of 
women "  ;  and  when  spoken  to  they  are 
"daughters  of  Jerusalem,"  as  in  the  six  places, 
chapters  i.  5  ;  ii.  7  ;  iii.  5,  10  ;  v.  8  ;  viii.  4. 

To  distinguish  infallibly  the  male  speakers 
is  at  present  probably  impossible,  but  to  do  so 
with  a  fair  degree  of  certainty  is  not  extremely 
difficult.  Wc  point  out  a  few  indications  here, 
reserving  a  fuller  treatment  for  the  chapter  on 
"  Literary  Features  of  the  Poem." 

The  king,  when  addressing  the  maiden,  al- 
ludes to  his  position,  as  in  i.  9,  11;  vi.  4,  or 
makes  use  of  language  referring  to  his  animals, 
trappings,  furniture,  possessions,  and  things  of 
artificial  life ;  his  metaphors  are  rather  elabo- 
rate, not  to  say  strained  ;  the  coloring  of  his 
diction  is  that  of  a  city-bred  man  in  high  life. 
He  calls  the  one  to  whom  he  is  paying  his  at- 
tentions, "my  love"  —  as  the  Revision  trans- 
lates this  special  form  of  address,  the  old  ver- 
sion having  "  my  friend."  The  word  in  the 
Hebrew  {rayali)  is  different  from  the  forms  of 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE.  9I 

address  which  the  shepherd-lover  uses  to  his 
betrothed,  though  among  his  many  terms  of 
endearment,  this  of  "my  love,"  or  "  my  dear," 
is  also  employed.  This  variety  of  address  as- 
sists us,  though  not  infallibly,  to  distinguish 
the  male  speakers.  In  the  final  colloquy,  the 
king's  language  strains  the  limits  of  propriety 
never  even  approached  by  the  rural  lover. 

On  the  contrary,  the  shepherd  speaks  a  less 
rhetorical,  polished,  and  artificial  language, 
which  reflects  the  images  of  rural  and  outdoor 
life.  His  talk  is  of  flocks,  sheep,  flowers,  nat- 
ural perfumes  and  foods,  and  of  objects  within 
the  range  of  his  vision,  or  of  popular  knowl- 
edge. His  words  have  not  th^ shadow  of  im- 
propriety in  them,  though  full  of  intense  pas- 
sion and  an  abandon  of  emotion  that  seems 
at  the  very  nadir  of  the  modern  lover  whose 
chief  aim,  if  we  may  trust  the  average  novel, 
is  to  hold  himself  in  constraint  before  the 
woman  he  secretly  worships. 

The  Shulamite's  talk  of  her  beloved  refers  to 
an  environment  different  from  that  of  an  inhab- 
itant of  kings'  houses,  though  when  portraying 
him  to  the  palace  ladies  she  describes  his  per- 
son in  terms  of  the  luxury  then  seen  around 
speaker  and  hearers.  She  invariably  calls  him 
by  one  supreme  pet  name  which  she  never  be- 
stows upon  her  royal  suitor.  The  lover,  whether 


92  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

absent  or  present,  is  the  "  beloved."  This  word 
{dod)  is  found  like  the  recurring  strain  of 
melody  in  a  great  symphony.  The  revisers 
have  carefully  discriminated  one  phase  of  this 
feature,  adding  in  the  margin  to  Solomon's  form 
of  address  "  my  love  "  (chap.  i.  9),  ''  my  friend'' 
(and  so  throughout),  though  they  have  neg- 
lected to  add  the  equally  important  fact  that 
the  accepted  lover's  title  "  my  beloved  "  is  also 
"so  throughout,"  and  is  never  used  by,  or  ap- 
plied to,  the  royal  suitor.  In  the  plural,  this 
word  {dod)  signifies  caresses,  or  other  signs  of 
affection,  except  where  in  one  place  it  refers 
probably  to  friends  or  spectators.  Indeed  it 
may  be  said  that  on  the  right  discrimination 
and  understanding  of  the  different  Hebrew 
words  expressed  in  English  by  the  one  word 
"love,"  rests  the  appreciation  and  comprehen- 
sion of  this  apparently  enigmatical  book.  We 
know  what  staple  for  popular  misunderstand- 
ing, as  well  as  for  homiletic  expatiation,  the 
poverty  of  our  language  affords,  when  in  the 
English  version  of  the  New  Testament,  three 
distinct  Greek  words  are  rendered  by  that  one 
factotum  of  four  letters  —  "love."  Unfortu- 
nately, we  are  put  to  nearly  as  great  a  strait 
in  trying  to  make  an  inadequate  vagueness 
in  English  do  duty  for  clear  distinctions  in 
Hebrew  which  serve  excellently  for  dramatic 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE.  93 

as  well  as  ideographic  signs.     In  the  refrain, 
chapters  ii.  7,  iii.   5,  v.  8,  viii.  4,  and   in  the 
climax,   chap.    viii.    6,    7,    the   word   for   love 
{aJiabah)  refers  to  the  sentiment  and  not  to  a 
person  ;  though  in  chap.  iii.  10,  and  vii.  6,  this 
same  word  is  used  in  a  way  that  partakes  both 
of  the  abstract  and  the  concrete,  in  connection 
with  the  Shulamite.     The  word  ray  ah,  which 
we   may   translate    my  "dear,"  my  "friend," 
my  "love"  (chap.  i.  9,  ii.  10),  is  used  alike  by 
Solomon  and  the  shepherd-lover,  though  the 
latter  calls  her  also  by  the  more  pronounced 
names    of  bride,  and   sister,  beside  other  en- 
dearing epithets.     The  one  name  however  by 
which    the  Shulamite,  the  main  character  of 
the   poem,  addresses   or   speaks  of  her    "  be- 
loved "    is    dod,  and    this  special    designation 
she  bestows  upon  no  one  else.      The  reader 
of  the  English   Bible  may  be  assisted  in  his 
study  of    the   poem    by  noticing  how,  when, 
where,    and    by   whom    the    various    Hebrew 
words  for  "  love  "  are  used  :  — 

Ahabak,  chapters  ii.  4,  5,  7 ;  iii.  5,  10 ;  v. 
8  ;  vii.  6  ;  viii.  4,  6,  7,  7. 

Aheb,  i.  3,  4,  7,  16;  iii.  i,  2,  3,  4. 
Rajah,  i.  9,    15;  ii.   2,    10,    13;  iv.    i,   7  ;  v. 
2  ;  vi.  4. 

Dod,  ii.  3,  8,  9,  10,  16,  17;  iv.  16;  v.  i, 
2,  4,  5,  6,  8,  9,  9,  10,  16;  vi.  I,  2,  3  ;  vii.  9, 
10,  II,  13  ;  viii.   5,  14. 


94  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

The  two  words  ahabah  and  aJieb  are  from  the 
same  root  signifying,  as  noun  and  verb,  the 
general  sentiment  of  Affection,  and  are  used  in 
some  of  the  most  tender  and  beautiful  pas- 
sages in  the  Old  Testament,  as  for  example 
by  Jacob,  Genesis  xxix.  20,  David,  2  Samuel  i, 
26,  and  Isaiah  Ixiii.  9.  Rayah  means  dear  one, 
or  (female)  friend.  In  chapters  i.  2,  4  ;  iv.  10; 
vii.  12,  the  word  ^s'l^taT  signifies  the  acts  of  love  ; 
in  the  other  instances  noted  above  it  refers 
to  a  person. 

The  step-brothers  of  the  heroine  are  referred 
to  in  three  places,  and  their  words  given  in 
two  of  these,  chap.  ii.  15,  and  viii.  8,  9. 

Of  the  citizens  of  Jerusalem  who  speak  in 
chapter  iii.  6-1 1,  there  are  probably  three  or 
four  who  make  question  and  answer,  each  hav- 
ing reference  to  what  most  attracts  his  atten- 
tion. The  poet  may  have  here  meant  also  to 
introduce  a  chorus. 

The  "  daughters  of  Jerusalem  "  are  the  pal- 
ace ladies  belonging  to  the  royal  harem.  They 
speak  frequently  in  chorus  or  solo,  not  only  in 
the  opening  scene,  and  in  description  of  the 
dancer  in  chapter  vii.  In  the  last  part  of  the 
poem  the  friends  of  the  shepherd  form  a  cho- 
rus, as  in  chapter  viii.  5. 

It  may  be  that  we  have  also  two  snatches 
or  fragments  of  popular  songs  such  as  often 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE.  95 

echoed  in  the  vineyards  of  Israel  twenty-fiv^e 
centuries  ago.  The  words  primarily  uttered 
by  the  step-brothers,  as  a  command  or  warn- 
ing, were  probably  also  a  ditty  sung  in  ^act  in 
actual  life,  and  in  representation  also  when 
this  composition  was  sung  at  wedding  festivals 
or  recited  in  public. 

The  pretty  fragment  in  chapter  vi.  13,  which 
begins  chapter  vii.  in  the  Hebrew,  with  its  four 
repetitions  of  the  word  "  return,"  is  as  musical 
in  its  way  as  the  echo-chorus  in  the  Bugle-song 
of  Tennyson.  The  repeated  Hebrew  word 
shube,  ending  in  a  long,  open  vowel,  is  one  that 
is  found  in  some  of  the  most  melodious  pas- 
sages in  the  Bible,  the  music  of  which  so 
charms  the  ear.  It  is  the  same  as  that  which 
Ruth  used  in  her  immortal  refusal  to  forsake 
Naomi,  "  Entreat  me  not  to  leave  thee,  or  to  re- 
turn from  following  after  thee,"  etc.  It  is  one 
of  the  most  effective  words  to  the  ear  either 
in  Hebrew  or  English.  It  is  often  used  in  the 
poetical  books,  but  nowhere  else  in  such  strik- 
ing repetitions  as  in  this  passage.  If  this  can- 
tata was  ever  enacted  in  public  with  musical 
accompaniment,  the  effect  of  this  echo-chorus 
must  have  been  very  sweet  to  the  ear.  In  the 
poem  the  words  may  have  been  uttered  by 
Solomon,  but  more  probably  by  the  court 
ladies. 


96  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

Most  Striking  of  the  features  which  reveal 
the  dramatic  structure  of  this  consummate 
work  of  Hebrew  poetical  art,  is  the  formula 
of  adjuration,  "  I  adjure  you,  O  ye  daughters 
of  Jerusalem,  by  the  roes  and  by  the  hinds  of 
the  field,  that  ye  stir  not  up  nor  awaken  love 
till  it  please." 

The  recurrence  of  this  formula  four  differ- 
ent times  at  the  end  of  decisive  scenes  divides 
the  composition  into  six  parts  ;  or,  shall  we 
say,  acts  ?  As  a  division-mark  it  reminds  us 
of  the  Selah  of  the  Psalms,  indicating  a  pause 
of  considerable  length.  Its  words  are  always 
addressed  to  the  court  ladies.  Instead  of 
being  a  "slumber-song"  or  lullaby,  it  is  more 
than  a  "  charge  "  not  to  awaken  a  beloved  one 
who  wishes  to  sleep;  it  is  an  impassioned,  sol- 
emn appeal  to  those  who  would  wantonly,  even 
frivolously,  stir  up  the  God-born  emotion.  The 
word  used  by  the  Shulamite,  or  put  into  her 
mouth  by  the  poet,  is  the  same  which  in  other 
parts  of  the  Bible  is  rendered  to  "  swear  by  an 
oath,"  to  "  confirm  by  an  oath,"  to  "  bind  with 
an  oath,"  being  so  rendered  about  one  hun- 
dred and  fifty  times  in  most  of  the  English 
versions  of  the  Bible. 

The  translators  of  1611,  however,  allowed 
their  notions  of  interpretation  to  warp  the 
plain  meaning  of  the  text,   and  so,  curiously 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE.  97 

enough,  the  "  Solomon's  Song "  of  the  old 
version  is  the  one  book  in  the  Bible  in  which 
the  Hebrew  sheba  (as  in  Beer-sheba  the  well 
of  the  oath,  Bath-sheba  daughter  of  an  oath, 
etc.)  was  translated  "  charge."  The  Revisers 
of  1884,  honestly  conforming  to  the  text,  have 
rightly  rendered  this  strong  word  "adjure." 

Whether  it  was  right  for  a  Hebrew,  a  wor- 
shiper of  Jehovah,  to  swear  by  the  roes  and 
gazelles  of  the  fields  instead  of  by  some  name 
of  the  Deity,  we  do  not  here  discuss.  When 
long  afterwards  in  Egypt  the  Canticle  was 
translated  into  their  own  Greek  speech  by  the 
Alexandrian  Jews,  they  evidently  found  offense 
in  this  appeal  to  wild  creatures,  and  translated 
"By  the  powers  and  virtues  of  the  field,"  etc. 
Certainly  the  Bible  gives  many  forms  and 
fashions  of  oaths,  with  much  variety  both  of 
language  and  gesture.  Perhaps  with  uplifted 
hand  and  flashing  eyes,  the  Shulamite  called 
upon  the  creatures  most  free,  most  untram- 
meled,  most  timorous,  as  well  as  most  familiar 
to  her  childhood's  life,  to  be  witnesses  ;  even 
as  Abraham  in  taking  oath  with  Abimelech 
at  Beer-shcba,  the  well  of  the  oath,  set  forth 
seven  female  lambs  as  witnesses  (Genesis 
xxi.  27-30).  The  country  girl  of  the  North 
was  probably  accustomed  thus  to  swear  by 
creatures  that  had  impressed  her  imagination, 


98  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

even  as  her  neighbors  swore  by  their  head, 
beard,  tent-pole,  or  by  other  objects  often  in 
themselves  trivial  or  commonplace,  as  well  as 
by  the  temple,  by  the  blood,  or  by  Heaven. 

There  are  in  the  Song  many  plays  on  words, 
alliterations,  and  brilliant  repartees  which  take 
their  cue  from  the  last  speaker.  It  is  as  hard 
to  transfer  these  from  Hebrew  poetry  over  into 
English  prose  as  to  keep  the  perfume  in  a 
pressed  flower.  There  are  also  some  obscu- 
rities that  have  not  yet  yielded  their  secret  to 
investigation. 

The  various  scenes  in  which  the  heroine 
finds  herself  are  laid  either  in  Jerusalem,  both 
within  and  without  the  palace,  in  the  streets 
and  open  squares  of  the  city,  and  on  or  near 
the  walls  ;  or,  in  Northern  Israel,  in  the  vine- 
yards, fields,  gardens,  mountain  slopes,  and 
childhood's  scenes  under  the  trees.  To  the  ac- 
cepted lover,  "  my  beloved  "  of  the  poem,  who 
is  the  shepherd,  the  maiden  often  speaks,  or 
talks,  as  if  he  were  in  her  presence.  Appar- 
ently he  is  in  Jerusalem,  and  at  the  palace,  as 
well  as  in  Hermon  and  the  land  of  Issachar  in 
the  far  North. 

Since  by  far  the  greater  portion  of  the  poem 
consists  of  addresses  or  references  to  "  the  be- 
loved "  or  of  his  words  to  the  Shulamite,  the 
question  naturally  arises.  How  does  the  author 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE.  99 

intend  to  represent  the  movements  of  "the  be- 
loved "  ?  Does  he  mean  us  to  understand  that 
the  shepherd  appears  on  the  scene  in  objective 
reality,  bodily  in  the  flesh,  in  presence  of, 
alongside  of,  or  embracing  the  maiden  ?  Does 
he  come  to  Jerusalem,  walk  in  the  gardens, 
or  under  the  windows  of  the  palace  ?  Is  he  a 
visible  speaker  on  the  stage  ?  Does  he  with 
actual  and  audible  voice  bid  her  fly  with  him  ? 
Is  the  scene  meant  to  be  shifted  in  objective 
reality  from  Jerusalem  to  Hermon,  from  city 
to  country,  from  palace  to  cottage  ? 

Or,  does  the  poet  down  to  chapter  vii.  10 
represent  the  home-sick  and  love-sick  girl  in 
one  place,  the  royal  palace  or  Jerusalem,  all 
the  time ;  and  are  the  various  scenes  of  the 
meetings  of  the  lovers  subjective  only  in  vis- 
ion, trance,  or  ecstasy  ? 

However  it  may  have  been  exhibited,  when, 
or  if,  the  cantata  was  publicly  sung  or  enacted, 
we  think  that  all  the  scenes  containing  an  ap- 
parent dialogue  between  the  lovers,  except  in 
the  final  union  in  chapter  viii.,  are  ideal.  The 
purpose  of  the  poet  is  manifestly  to  represent 
the  shepherd-lover  as  invisible  until  the  final 
scene  of  triumph,  when  he  leads  this  lily,  no 
longer  among  thorns,  to  the  gardens  of  happy 
home  and  marriage.  From  the  opening  of  the 
first    scene,  until    the  beginning  of   the   final 


lOO  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

ones  in  chapter  viii.,  the  actual  movement  of 
the  drama  is  in  or  near  the  royal  quarters, 
whether  in  pavilion  in  Galilee,  or  palace  at 
Jerusalem.  The  lover  is  seen  and  heard,  re- 
membered as  in  the  dream,  or  thought  of  as 
present  in  the  spirit,  but  all  this  is  only  in  the 
mind  of  the  Shulamite,  who  is  severed  in  the 
flesh  from  him. 

In  other  words,  this  biblical  drama  is  enacted 
mainly  in  the  soul  of  the  maiden.  The  chief 
centre  of  the  reader's  thought  and  attention  is 
the  woman's  heart,  and  all  else  is  but  subordi- 
nate and  illustrative.  The  order  of  importance 
of  the  characters  is,  first,  the  Shulamite  ;  sec- 
ond, the  shepherd-lover  ;  and  third,  Solomon  ; 
but  the  dramatic  and  psychological  importance 
of  the  two  men  is  of  small  importance.  The 
real  motion  and  arena  are  in  the  feelings  of  the 
woman.  As  on  the  Chinese  stage,  on  account 
of  the  gorgeous  colors  and  drapery  of  the 
actors,  no  scenery  is  needed,  so  in  this  He- 
brew drama  the  changing  mood  and  intense 
feelings  of  the  heroine  make  everything  else 
only  subordinately  necessary.  The  minor  char- 
acters, indispensable  as  machinery,  might,  as 
in  the  drama  of  Japan,  wear  masks  or  blacken 
their  faces  to  prevent  recognition,  yet  would 
the  soul  of  the  Shulamite  be  visible  in  all  its 
moods. 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE.  lOI 

We  have  called  this  unique  book  in  the  libra- 
ry of  inspiration  a  drama,  and  its  various  parts, 
acts  and  scenes,  not  because  it  has  the  logical 
progress  and  harmonies  of  the  Greek  trage- 
dies, for  these  the  Song  of  Songs  has  not.  It 
is  lacking  in  those  striking  sequences  of  move- 
ment, as  well  as  of  thought,  which  we  associate 
with  the  plays  of  Euripides  or  Shakespeare. 
The  change  of  scene  to  scene  is  abrupt,  with- 
out close  connection  one  with  the  other,  though 
there  is  a  plot,  development,  and  climax. 

What  is  even  more  noticeable  is  the  almost 
utter  absence  of  effect  of  the  addresses  of  the 
speaker  upon  the  person  addressed.  In  this 
drama  of  feeling,  and  not  of  logic  and  reason, 
each  actor  seems  utterly  uninfluenced  by  the 
arguments  or  inducements  of  the  other,  while 
all  the  time  the  moods  of  these  people  who  feel 
intensely  are  expressed  with  the  exactness  of  a 
photograph,  with  the  rapidity  of  rays  of  light, 
and  with  a  variety  of  words  which  in  their 
shadings  defy  the  translator,  even  as  the  whole 
book  mocks  and  disdains  the  commentator. 

In  other  words,  in  this  drama  we  find  as  the 
result  of  dialogue  little  modification  of  ideas, 
but  much  of  feeling.  Whereas  in  Western 
love-making  there  is,  among  men  at  least,  a 
dread  lest  the  suitor  should  give  way  to  his 
real  emotions,  we  find  here  the  real  lover  aban- 


I02  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

doning  himself  in  a  torrent  of  emotion  ;  while 
in  the  woman's  heart  the  storm  is  unceasing 
until  peace  is  won,  when  the  genuine  woman 
asserts  her  delight  in  the  kind  of  coquetry  that 
gilds  man's  life  and  gives  it  charm. 

Hebrew  dramatic  writing  in  so  far  as  we 
know  it,  like  other  poetry  of  this  hot-blooded 
people,  is  intensely  subjective,  and  before  the 
stress  or  glow  of  feeling  in  the  heroine's  bosom 
all  else  bends  and  pales.  This  idea  of  the  poet 
is  especially  illustrated  in  the  fact  that  in  con- 
structing his  work  he  makes  at  least  four  of 
the  scenes,  and  parts  of  others,  ideal  ;  that  is, 
in  reminiscence  or  dream.  The  two  dreams 
are  notable  features,  and  occur  immediately 
after  the  heroine's  feelings  have  been  especially 
excited.  We  comclude  that  it  is  the  object  of 
the  sacred  dramatist  to  keep  in  shadow  and 
distance  the  lover,  so  that  the  trials  of  the  "  lily 
among  thorns"  may  be  shown  to  be  all  the 
more  real  and  severe.  The  internal  dramatic 
unity  of  the  poem  is  most  perfectly  maintained 
in  the  character  of  this  tried  and  proved  Shu- 
lamite,  to  whom  the  king  and  the  peasant-lover 
are  dramatically  subordinate. 

Further,  the  love  which  is  pure,  holy,  and 
God-born,  is  of  purpose  set  forth  as  far  as  pos- 
sible without  trace  of  coarseness,  fleshliness,  or 
impurity.     As  stainless  as  a  marble  statue  is 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE.  I03 

this  inspired  drama  of  love.  The  virgin  hero- 
ine is  absolutely  chaste  and  guileless.  The 
only  possible  approach  to  indelicacy  in  the 
whole  poem  is  found  immediately  after  the  de- 
scription, by  the  court  ladies,  of  the  dancer  of 
Mahanaim  ;  and  this  brief  passage  is  put  into 
the  mouth  of  the  royal  voluptuary,  who  is  in- 
dignantly and  boldly  interrupted  by  the  virgin 
heroine. 

At  this  point,  chapter  vii.  9,  second  line, 
Delitzsch  and  most  Hebraists,  even  though 
differing  in  their  interpretations,  agree  as  to 
the  fact  that  the  Shulamite  interrupts  the  king. 
"  The  dramatic  structure  of  the  Song  becomes 
here  more  strongly  manifest  than  elsewhere  be- 
fore." The  reader  of  the  English  Bible  may 
ask,  "  How  do  you  know  this  }  "  We  answer, 
that  the  Shulamite  has  one  invariable  desig- 
nation for  her  lover  ;  which  is  "  my  beloved  " 
{dod),  which  she  never  applies  to  the  royal 
suitor,  and  which  is  never  used  by  Solomon. 
It  is  her  language  and  hers  only.  Further,  as 
Delitzsch  says,  "The  text  as  it  stands  before 
us  requires  an  interchange  of  the  speakers,  and 
nothing  prevents  the  supposition  of  such  an 
interchange." 

The  various  ideal  scenes  in  which  the  lovers 
talk  or  walk  together  are  in  general  clearly  in- 
dicated by  rhetorical  guide-marks  as  manifest 


104  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

as  the  shifting  of  actual  scenery  of  board  and 
canvas  on  a  stage,  or  the  rise  and  fall  of  a 
curtain.  The  chief  demarkation  point  is  the 
refrain  of  adjuration,  —  "I  adjure  you,  O  ye 
daughters  of  Jerusalem,  by  the  roes  and  by  the 
hinds  of  the  field,  that  ye  stir  not  up  nor 
awaken  love  till  it  please."  This  marked  fea- 
ture in  the  drama  occurring  four  times,  divides 
the  movement  into  five  separate  acts. 

The  various  scenes,  which  number  fourteen 
in  all,  are  separated  from  each  other  by  minor 
refrains,  such  as  "  My  beloved  is  mine,  and  I 
am  his,"  which  occurs  three  times ;  as  likewise 
the  three  references  to  the  mountains,  by 
which  three  of  the  scenes  are  closed.  The 
reveries,  dreams,  or  night-visions  of  the  Shu- 
lamite  are  indicated  by  the  words  which  begin 
a  new  scene,  "By  night  on  my  bed,  I  sought;" 
"  I  sleep,  but  my  heart  waketh."  The  two  spec- 
tacular scenes  in  which  a  procession  appears, 
and  choruses  of  spectators  take  part  as  the 
heroine  enters  Jerusalem  in  the  royal  litter,  or 
returns  home  with  her  beloved,  are  introduced 
by  the  question  "  Who  is  this  .-•  "  Indeed,  con- 
sidering that  the  Song  of  Songs  consists  en- 
tirely of  continuous  dialogue  without  any  ex- 
ternal marks  or  prose  versicles  to  guide  the 
reader,  as  in  Job,  the  artistic  form  is  all  the 
more  remarkable  and  its  consummate  art  all 
the  more  demonstrable. 


DRAMATIC  STRUCTURE. 


105 


In  our  view  of  the  poem,  the  scene  of  the 
first  two  acts  is  in  the  women's  quarters  of 
the  royal  tents  in  northern  Palestine  ;  that 
of  the  third  and  fourth  acts  is  in  Jerusalem, 
and  the  palace  ;  while  in  the  fifth  act,  the 
scene  again  recurs  to  the  mountain  home  of 
the  shepherd  and  the  Shulamite.  The  divi- 
sions of  the  drama,  referred  to  the  chapters 
and  verses  of  the  English  Bible,  which  with  a 
few  exceptions  are  similar  to  those  appended 
to  the  Hebrew  text,  are  as  follows  : 


Act  I. 

Scene  I. 

Scene  11. 
Act  II. 

Scene  I. 

Scene  II. 
Act  III. 

Scene  I. 

Scene  II. 

Scene  III. 

Scene  IV. 
Act  IV. 

Scene  I. 

Scene  II. 

Scene  III 

Scene  IV. 
Act  V. 

Scene  I. 

Scene  II. 


Chapter  and  Verse. 
I.   2-8. 

I.  9-II.   7. 

II.  8-17. 

III.  1-5. 

III.  6-1 1. 

IV.  1-7. 

IV.  8-V.  I. 

V.  2-8. 

V.  9-VI.  3. 

vr.  4-9. 

VI.  lo-VII.  7. 

VII.  8-VIII.  4. 

VIII.  5-7. 
VIII,  8-14. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

HISTORY    OF    THE    BOOK     ITSELF. 

The  fate  of  the  finest  of  Hebrew  poems,  the 
history  of  the  book  itself,  both  as  to  its  out- 
ward form  and  inward  purpose,  forms  a  most 
extraordinary  chapter  in  the  annals  of  litera- 
ture. We  shall  here  attempt  to  show  how  it 
came  to  pass  that  so  simple  and  beautiful  a 
piece  of  poetry  was  in  the  process  of  time 
turned  into  an  allegory,  and  later  into  a  mys- 
terious symbol  full  of  the  most  advanced  dog- 
matic theology ;  and  shall  then,  glancing  at  its 
remarkable  literary  history,  try  to  explain  the 
process  by  which  a  matchless  poem  was  pul- 
verized into  common  prose. 

Let  us  first  explain  what  an  allegory  is,  giv- 
ing several  examples  ;  then  detail  the  process 
by  which  Canticles  lost  its  historic  and  literal 
character,  and  gained  the  reputation  of  hav- 
ing a  purely  mystic  nature  and  purpose,  which 
did  not  originally  belong  to  it,  and  of  which 
the  Bible,  apart  from  uncertain  analogies,  gives 
no  hint  whatever. 

An  allegory  is  the  description  of  one  thing 


HISTORY  OF   THE  BOOK  ITSELF.         10/ 

under  the  image  of  another.  In  an  allegory 
we  use  the  concrete  to  enforce  the  abstract, 
represent  one  thing  in  pictures  or  narrative  in 
order  to  consider  something  else.  An  allegory 
is  a  metaphor  long  drawn  out,  or  a  chain  of 
metaphors  constantly  involving  a  transfer  of 
meaning.  The  current  of  thought  must  con- 
stantly break  contact  with  the  words.  All  lit- 
erature is  full  of  short  allegories,  like  that  of 
Plato's  comparison  of  the  soul  to  a  charioteer 
drawn  by  two  horses,  one  white,  the  other 
black.  Shakespeare's  text  is  rich  with  these 
tropical  pictures  ;  but  the  longest  as  well  as 
the  most  perfect  allegories  in  the  English 
language  are  Spencer's  "  Fairie  Queen  "  and 
Bunyan's  "  Pilgrim's  Progress."  On  Spencer's 
field  of  the  cloth  of  gold,  knights,  ladies,  lions, 
lambs,  monsters,  and  demons  move  briskly ; 
but  by  these  he  means  to  tell  us  about  Holi- 
ness, Temperance,  Chastity,  Mammon,  De- 
spair, Cruelty,  etc.  The  lions  and  lambs  are 
only  emblems  of  virtues.  So  John  Bunyan 
pictures  a  variety  of  characters,  pilgrims,  trav- 
elers, and  shopmen,  and  shows  the  every- 
day people  of  middle  England  two  hundred 
years  ago,  and  what  one  may  see  at  Coney 
Island,  on  Broadway,  or  at  a  county  fair  to- 
day. The  immortal  dreamer's  object  is  to 
show  us   moral   truths   and   the    temptations, 


I08  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

joys,  and  trials  of  a  Christian  on  his  journey  to 
Heaven. 

An  allegory  is  somewhat  different  from  a 
parable  ;  for  a  parable  is  a  narrative  of  im- 
agined facts  or  of  events  not  supposed  as  a 
whole  to  have  actually  happened,  while  an  al- 
legory is  usually  a  continuation  of  similitudes 
without  the  signs  of  comparisons  at  hand.  Its 
sense  is  twofold  ;  thus,  "  Israel  is  a  cake  not 
turned."  Parables  do  not  have  metaphors  in 
the  telling  of  them  ;  the  seed  is  seed,  the  lamp 
is  a  lamp,  the  fish  a  fish.  Allegories  are  full 
of  metaphors  :  the  grasshopper  is  some  bodily 
organ,  the  silver  cord  is  the  spinal  marrow,  the 
golden  bowl  is  the  human  skull,  etc. 

There  are  many  allegories  in  the  Bible.  In 
the  eightieth  Psalm,  Israel  is  described  as  a 
vine  brought  out  of  Egypt,  planted,  tended, 
rent  by  the  wild  boars,  trampled  down,  etc.; 
which  means  that  the  Hebrew  nation  is  in 
great  distress  and  has  many  enemies.  The 
description  of  old  age  in  Ecclesiastes,  under 
the  similes  belonging  to  a  house,  is  a  superbly 
beautiful  allegory  in  which  windows,  doors,  pil- 
lars, wheels,  pitchers,  cisterns,  etc.,  refer  to 
the  eyes,  mouth,  heart,  limbs,  and  trunk  of  the 
aged  human  body.  Nathan's  allegory  of  the 
traveler  stealing  the  poor  man's  pet  lamb  is 
another  example.     So  also  is  the  parliament  of 


HISTORY  OF  THE  BOOK  ITSELF.        IO9 

the  trees  and  plants  in  Judges  ix.,  in  which 
the  only  one  that  wants  to  be  king  is  the 
bramble  ;  as  well  as  the  happy  family  in  Isaiah 
xi.,  of  the  lion  and  the  lamb  lying  down  to- 
gether, and  a  little  child  leading  them. 

A  first-rate  allegory  explains  itself,  and  does 
not  need  an  interpreter  because  the  interpreta- 
tion is  transparent  to  all.  You  can  see  the  fly 
through  the  amber  at  once.  As,  for  example, 
Christ  says,  "  I  am  the  Vine  and  my  Father 
is  the  Husbandman."  Sometimes,  however,  a 
mixed  or  inferior  sort  of  allegory  must  be  ex- 
plained. Then  the  danger  is  that  the  inter- 
preter will  discover  too  many  coincidences, 
and  make  the  application  of  too  many  details. 

There  are  some  people  whose  minds  revel  in 
allegories.  They  would  find  types,  shadows, 
meanings,  coincidences  everywhere.  They 
ransack  the  whole  Old  Testament  and  reduce 
everything  to  symbolism.  They  would  de- 
grade pure  history  into  fiction  and  try  to  paint 
God's  lilies  and  gild  his  gold.  Wherever  the 
number  three  occurs,  they  discover  the  doc- 
trine of  the  Trinity  ;  twelve,  the  apostles  of 
Christ ;  in  the  color  red,  blood  ;  in  this  thing 
the  cross,  in  that  the  crown.  Every  scripture 
passage  has  to  them  a  mystic  sense,  a  deep 
hidden  signification,  and  the  plainest  state- 
ment is   an   emblem    of   something  different. 


no  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

Such  people  turn  the  Bible  upside  down,  and 
defeat  the  very  purpose  of  revelation,  God's 
Word  is  a  book  for  the  race,  for  plain  men,  and 
till  the  end  of  time  the  grammar  and  diction- 
ary will  be  the  best  books  to  get  at  what  the 
writers  said  and  meant ;  while  common  sense, 
an  humble  and  willing  heart,  and  prayer  for 
the  Holy  Spirit  will  be  the  best  aids  to  under- 
stand just  what  God  means.  Just  now  the 
grammar  and  dictionary  are  battering  down 
the  walls  of  Jewish  fables  which  rabbis  have 
raised  around  the  Old  Testament. 

Although  the  Scriptures  are  abused  and 
turned  into  excess  of  allegory  through  unbridled 
imagination,  or  more  often  through  the  vagaries 
of  fancy,  we  must  not  despise  parables,  em- 
blems, or  types,  but  must  discover,  employ, 
and  enjoy  them  as  the  apostles  did,  — soberly, 
carefully,  moderately  ;  as,  for  instance,  in  the 
Epistle  to  the  Hebrews,  one  of  the  sublimest 
and  most  edifying  books  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment. 

Sometimes  Paul  draws  an  allegory  from  ac- 
tual facts  of  history,  but  he  does  not  turn  the 
history  into  an  allegory  ;  it  is  to  him  actual 
narration  of  facts,  but  facts  so  related  as  to  be 
typical. 

Between  Mount  Sinai  and  Jerusalem,  be- 
tween   the   son    of  the   slave  woman  and  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  BOOK  ITSELF.        Ill 

children  of  the  free  mother,  he  draws  a  com- 
parison in  Galatians  iv.  22-31.  This  he  does 
to  show  Christian  freedom  by  grace  as  against 
bondage  to  a  ceremonial  law  ;  that  is,  a  man  is 
saved  by  Christ,  and  not  by  the  blood  of  goats 
and  bullocks ;  and  his  life  must  be  by  faith 
and  good  works  to  God  and  man,  not  by  ques- 
tions of  meats  and  drinks  and  holy  days. 

A  good  allegory  is  a  good  thing,  but  to  turn 
a  whole  book  of  history  or  poetry  founded  on 
historical  facts  into  an  allegory  is  to  smother  a 
living  thing  and  make  it  a  mummy.  It  is  add- 
ing to  the  scripture  something  not  there  and 
taking  away  what  is.  Paul  made  use  of  Hagar 
and  Sarah  to  point  an  argument,  but  he  did 
not  thereby  make  the  historical  fact  any  the 
less  true,  or  the  women  any  less  real  flesh  and 
blood  of  decidedly  feminine  quality.  In  show- 
ing that  freedom  was  better  than  slavery,  he 
did  not  declare  that  the  story  of  Abraham's 
casting  out  of  Hagar  was  a  fiction  or  a  myth. 
Even  an  apostle  had  no  right  to  do  this.  It 
was  still  a  fact,  and  the  history  is  true.  Paul 
was  careful  to  state  what  he  was  doing :  said 
he,  "  Which  things,"  that  is,  which  solid  facts 
of  history,  ^'contain  an  allegory,  for  there  are 
two  covenants."  In  the  Revised  Version  we 
see  how  clear  the  apostle  makes  this  matter. 
The  historic  facts  are  also  allegorical,  because 


112  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

the  women  represent  covenants.  He  does  not 
say  these  events  are  only  an  allegory,  but  that 
they  contain  one.  Now  from  this  example  of 
the  inspired  apostle  let  us  draw  our  rule  of  in- 
terpreting the  Scriptures  of  the  Old  Testament 
and  especially  the  Song  of  Songs. 

A  tendency  to  discover  allegories  may  be 
as  much  a  proof  of  poverty  of  imagination  as 
of  exuberance  of  fancy,  the  latter  being  the 
servant  of  sense,  the  former  the  servant  of  rea- 
son. Most  of  the  ten  thousand  fanciful  alle- 
gories and  meanings  which  people  find  in  the 
Scriptures  may  be  safely  rejected.  We  are  to 
beware  how  we  consider  any  Bible  history  as 
allegorical,  except  that  which  Christ,  the  apos- 
tles, or  inspired  persons  have  treated  allegori- 
cally.  Paul  in  his  use  of  allegory  was  strik- 
ingly temperate,  but  the  moderation  of  most 
commentators  on  Canticles  is  not  manifest. 

Ever  let  us  proceed  soberly  and  in  depend- 
ence upon  the  Holy  Spirit.  How  dare  we 
turn  the  Song  of  Songs,  a  whole  book  of  the 
Bible,  into  allegories  and  emblems,  when 
neither  prophet,  apostle,  nor  the  Christ  gives 
us  a  shadow  of  right  to  do  so  }  Surely  if  the 
Canticle  were  an  allegory,  the  New  Testament 
writers,  especially  Paul,  or  the  primitive 
Christians,  would  have  seized  upon  it,  used  it, 
and  told  us  this  article  of  their  faith. 


HISTORY  OF    THE  BOOK  ITSELF.        II3 

Furthermore,  in  all  allegories  there  are  hints 
of  their  meaning  and  internal  marks  of  their 
mystical  design.  Any  child  can  soon  see  what 
John  Bunyan  is  teaching  in  Pilgrim's  Progress. 
In  the  Canticle  there  is  nothing  of  this  appa- 
ratus of  interpretation.  Of  Christ  or  of  the 
Church,  of  the  Virgin  Mary,  of  the  Resurrec- 
tion, of  the  history  of  Christianity,  there  is  in 
the  language  no  intimation  whatever.  Further 
yet,  even  the  Jews  of  Alexandria,  or  those  who 
lived  in  the  time  of  Christ,  who  were  famous 
for  making  allegories,  read  the  Canticle  as  a 
poem  with  a  story,  but  never  as  a  vehicle  of 
dogmatics. 

Let  us  now  trace  the  steps  which  led  to  the 
modern  view,  such  as  is  set  forth  in  the  chap- 
ter-headings in  the  unrevised  versions,  which 
do  not — despite  the  profession  of  the  Bible 
Societies  —  contain  "  the  Holy  Scriptures  with- 
out note  or  comment,"  but  a  mixture.  In 
these  profane  additions  of  printers  and  com- 
mentators to  the  ancient  manuscripts,  the 
mediaeval  view  of  the  Song  of  Songs  is  fossil- 
ized. Probably  the  very  first  trace  of  the  al- 
legorical interpretation  which  identifies  the 
Church  specifically  as  the  bride  of  the  Canticle 
is  found  in  a  passage  in  a  weak  apocryphal 
book  called  the  fourth  book  of  Ezra,  or  2 
Esdras.     Luther   declared  this  writing  worse 


I  14  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

than  -^sop's  fables.  Even  the  Church  of 
Rome  refuses  to  receive  it  as  Scripture,  and  it 
is  not  usually  bound  up  with  the  other  books  of 
the  Apocrypha.      In  2  Esdras,  v.  23,  we  read  : 

"  O  Lord  who  bearest  rule,  from  every 
wood  of  the  earth,  and  from  all  the  trees 
thereof,  thou  hast  chosen  one  vine  ;  and  from 
all  lands  of  the  world  thou  hast  chosen  thee 
one  land  ;  and  from  all  the  flowers  thereof  one 
lily  ;  and  from  all  the  depths  of  the  sea  thou 
hast  filled  thee  one  river;  and  from  all  cities 
built  thou  hast  hallowed  Sion  unto  thyself  ; 
and  from  all  flying  things  that  are  created 
thou  hast  called  thee  one  dove  ;  and  from  all 
cattle  that  are  made  thou  hast  provided  thee 
one  sheep ;  and  from  all  the  multitudes  of 
peoples  thou  hast  gotten  thee  one  people ;  and 
unto  this  people,  whom  thou  lovedst,  thou 
gavest  a  law  that  is  approved  by  all." 

Now  from  this  mention  of  the  lily  and  the 
dove,  and  the  one  people  beloved,  and  in  all 
comparisons  Israel  as  the  chiefest  among  ten 
thousand,  came  the  idea  of  the  church  of  Is- 
rael, that  is  of  the  Old  Testament,  as  a  bride  ; 
which  in  the  seventh  chapter  and  twenty-eighth 
verse  of  this  same  apocryphal  book  is  thus 
spoken  of :  "  For  the  time  shall  come,  and  it 
shall  come  to  pass,  that  when  these  tokens 
which  I  have  told  thee  of  shall  come,  the  bride 


HISTORY  OF   THE  BOOK  ITSELF.        1 15 

shall  appear  and  the  city  shine  forth,  that  is 
now  withdrawn,  for  my  son  Jesus  shall  be  re- 
vealed with  those  that  are  with  him,  and  they 
that  remain  shall  rejoice  for  400  years.  And 
it  shall  come  to  pass  after  these  years,  that 
my  son  Christ  shall  die,  and  all  men  that  have 
breath,"  etc. 

Here  then,  one  thousand  years  after  the 
writing  of  the  Canticle,  when  many  of  its  local 
allusions  had  been  forgotten,  and  the  niceties 
of  its  language  lost,  because  Hebrew  was  a 
dead  language  to  the  majority,  when  nearly 
every  one  of  the  Jews  talked  Aramaic,  Greek, 
or  other  foreign  tongues,  instead  of  the  ancient 
language  of  Palestine,  and  when  allegory  had 
reached  the  point  of  a  craze  among  learned 
m.en,  the  first  germ  of  the  idea  of  altering 
the  original  meaning  of  the  Song  of  Songs 
came  into  being.  A  hundred  years  later,  when 
the  Jews  had  rejected  Jesus  as  the  Messiah, 
and  Jerusalem  had  been  destroyed,  when  He- 
brew was  rapidly  becoming  an  absolutely  dead 
language,  and  the  Talmud  was  being  formed, 
in  which  endless  tradition  wove  its  web  like  a 
spider  over  the  Old  Testament  as  over  a  closed 
door,  then  the  learned  rabbi  Akiba  completed 
in  the  Jewish  church  the  ascendancy  of  the 
allegorical  over  the  literal  interpretation. 

Another   hundred   years  later,   Origen,  the 


Il6  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

learned  divine  of  Alexandria  who  first  intro- 
duced into  the  Christian  church  the  allegoriz- 
ing method,  wrote  a  commentary  in  ten  vol- 
umes on  the  Canticle.  In  this  famous  book  he 
made  the  Shulamite  to  mean  the  Church  of 
Christ,  and  Solomon  to  mean  Jesus,  and  other 
persons  in  the  poem  to  stand  for  friends  or 
enemies  of  the  Church.  His  tremendous  au- 
thority settled  the  question  and  made  the  or- 
thodoxy of  the  time.  To  doubt  his  opinions 
was  to  become  a  heretic.  Grand  old  fighter  of 
the  heathen,  and  noble  witness  to  the  faith  as 
he  was,  he  filled  the  Bible  with  cobwebs.  In 
the  Middle  Ages  this  system  of  interpretation 
became  almost  universal.  Bernard  of  Clair- 
vaux  preached  over  fourscore  sermons  on  the 
first  two  chapters  of  the  book,  and  nearly  all 
commentators  until  the  eighteenth  century  was 
well  past,  followed  along  this  track. 

Now  the  long-handled  dust-brushes  of  re- 
search and  new  brooms  of  fresh  study  —  not  of 
the  fathers  or  of  the  Jewish  rabbis,  but  of  the 
Bible  itself  —  are  sweeping  away  these  purely 
human  imaginations.  We  are  more  and  more 
seeing  as  the  Israelites  of  two  thousand  and 
more  years  ago  saw,  and  reading  as  they  read. 
We  do  not  now  go  to  the  Jews  to  learn  He- 
brew or  find  out  what  the  Old  Testament 
means.   We  go  to  the  original  Scriptures  them- 


HISTORY  OF  THE   BOOK  ITSELF.        1 17 

selves.  Believing  that  the  Lord  is  in  his  holy 
temple,  we  expect  all  the  earth  to  keep  silence 
before  Him.  We  listen  to  the  lively  oracles 
while  the  voices  of  scribe  and  commentator 
are  stilled.  The  Jews,  since  the  Talmud  was 
formed,  have  not  been  nor  are  they  now  fed 
on  the  pure  milk  of  the  Word.  They  are 
nursed  on  rabbinical  notions.  The  veil  over 
their  eyes  is  this  Talmud.  Probably  not  more 
than  one  out  of  a  thousand  can  or  does  read 
the  Old  Testament  in  a  fair,  and  unprejudiced 
manner.  They  wear  the  spectacles  put  on 
their  eyes  by  the  Talmudical  writers,  without 
even  suspecting  it.  But  let  us  as  Christians 
beware  lest  we  too  err  in  like  manner,  by  be- 
ing led  away  by  the  fathers,  or  the  commen- 
tators, or  the  makers  of  chapter-headings  or 
church  lectionaries. 

Origen  was  a  man  of  extremes.  Because 
he  at  first  took  the  Bible  too  literally,  and 
on  the  strength  of  Christ's  words  about  the 
offending  member  actually  mutilated  himself, 
he  afterwards  went  to  the  other  extreme  and 
took  nothing  literally.  He  borrowed  the  intel- 
lectual vices  of  heathen  teachers,  and  applied 
to  the  Holy  Scriptures  a  method  of  interpre- 
tation radically  false.  He  found  three  or  four 
senses  in  every  text.  Said  he :  "  The  Scrip- 
tures are  of  little  use  to  those  who  understand 


Il8  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

them  as  they  are  written."  Hence  he  ever 
sought  for  the  hidden  and  mysterious  mean- 
ings, and  many  people  still  follow  him,  revel- 
ing in  the  delights  of  turning  one  simple 
piece  of  glass  into  a  kaleidoscope,  and  the 
Bible  into  a  secret  society's  lodge -room  and 
chamber  of  mystery.  Let  us  rather  follow 
Christ  and  Paul,  be  very  sparing  of  the  use  of 
allegory,  and  travel  on  the  humble  but  safe 
road  of  Bible  facts. 

We  need  not  go  any  further  and  trace  out 
the  full  history  of  this  unbiblical  interpreta- 
tion of  the  book  before  us,  nor  show  how 
Origen's  successors  enlarged  upon  his  views, 
and  how  subsequent  interpreters  found  nearly 
everything,  even  down  to  the  last  absurdities 
of  sectarian  rhapsody,  in  the  Canticle.  This 
one  book  has  stood  for  many  centuries  among 
the  other  Scriptures  like  the  heroine  of  it  — 
cast  out  of  her  own  place,  having  no  vineyard 
of  her  own,  keeping  the  vineyards  of  her  moth- 
er's sons,  but  her  own  not  kept.  Being  the 
first  of  the  five  Megilloth  or  rolls,  it  is  read 
annually  once  at  the  feast  of  the  Passover,  but 
is  otherwise  neglected  by  the  Jewish  people. 
The  Church  of  England  has  cast  it  out  of  her 
tables  of  Scripture  lessons,  though  retaining 
portions  of  the  apocryphal  books,  such  as 
Tobit,    Baruch,   Wisdom,  and   Ecclesiasticus ; 


HISTORY  OF  THE  BOOK  ITSELF.         I  19 

and,  emboldened  by  her  example,  editors  of 
the  Bible  in  private  translation  reject  this 
book  and  insert  instead  texts  from  Babylonian 
Tablets.  Alchemists,  fortune-tellers,  and  pol- 
iticians have  let  loose  their  vagrant  fancies 
upon  it,  until  this  divine  picture  of  love  has 
lain  buried  under  the  rubbish  and  whitewash 
of  ages  of  nonsense.  Nor  is  this  assertion 
any  the  less  true  because  devout  souls  have  in 
every  age  found  in  this  writing  the  parable  of 
the  soul's  affections  and  their  vocabulary  of 
adoration.  Suffice  it  to  say  that,  on  the  other 
hand,  since  Theodoret  of  Syria,  who  died  a.  d. 
457,  there  have  always  been  Christian  scholars 
who  have  denied  anything  either  impure  in 
the  thought  or  language  of  the  book,  or  that  it 
needed  an  occult  scheme  of  philosophy  to  ex- 
plain it,  or  that  it  was  an  allegory  relating  to 
Christ  and  the  Church. 

Now,  thanks  to  the  labors  of  many  students 
in  many  countries,  yet  all  coming  to  substan- 
tial agreement,  the  ancient  understanding  of 
it  has  been  regained.  Many  ministers  of  the 
gospel  believe,  even  if  they  hesitate  to  preach, 
the  original  ancient  view,  while  in  a  few  of 
our  own  theological  seminaries  the  simple 
natural  interpretation  is  taught  and  demon- 
strated. It  is  shown  that  the  title  "  Song  of 
Solomon  "  is  a  literary  anachronism  and  does 


120  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

not  belong  to  the  book,  but  has  been  added  by- 
tradition  ;  while  its  own  contents  prove  that 
Solomon  did  not  write  it  ;  and  finally  that  the 
first  and  oldest  translation  of  the  book  from 
Hebrew  into  Greek,  made  three  centuries  be- 
fore Christ,  lends  no  color  to  the  popular  idea 
of  an  allegory.  The  same  may  be  declared  of 
the  pre-Christian  works  of  Hebrew  literature 
entitled  the  book  of  Ecclesiasticus,  The  Wis- 
dom of  Solomon,  and  the  writings  of  Josephus. 

To  sum  up  what  has  been  said  concerning 
the  internal  purpose:  (i)  There  is  not  a  word 
or  a  scrap  of  evidence  in  the  Old  or  New  Tes- 
tament that  gives  basis  to  the  notion  that 
the  Song  of  Songs  refers  in  detailed  allegory 
to  Christ  and  the  Church,  or  that  bears  out 
this  fanciful  interpretation.  This  turning  of 
the  poem  into  an  allegory  began  long  after  the 
time  of  Christ,  and  was  introduced  into  the 
Christian  Church  by  Origen,  but  the  Bible 
gives  no  countenance  to  it. 

(2)  We  are  to  remember  that  all  the  head- 
ings of  chapters  and  pages,  as  well  as  the 
divisions  of  the  texts  of  the  Bible  into  chap- 
ters and  verses,  are  the  work  of  printers,  edi- 
tors, and  uninspired  men,  and  have  no  divine 
or  rational  authority.  This  method  of  surrep- 
titious note  and  comment,  amounting  virtu- 
ally to  a  system  of  interpretation,  is  no  part  of 


HISTORY  OF  THE  BOOK  ITSELF.         121 

Holy  Scripture,  and  it  improperly  influences 
many  people  in  their  conception  of  the  mean- 
ing of  God's  Word. 

(3)  We  are  to  bear  in  mind  that  the  words 
printed  in  italics  are  not  found  in  the  original 
language,  but  are  put  in  simply  to  make  sense 
or  complete  sentences,  so  as  to  read  more  ea- 
sily in  English.  Very  often  these  words  ob- 
scure rather  than  make  clear  the  intent  of  a 
passage,  and  Bible  students  will  often  find  that 
a  verse  becomes  stronger,  clearer,  and  better 
in  every  way  by  omitting  the  italics.  Often 
they  unwarrantably  convert  a  lively  metaphor 
or  a  little  allegory  into  a  prosy  simile  or  com- 
parison. 

Further,  there  is  not  one  book  in  the  Eng- 
lish version  of  the  Bible,  called  "  King  James's," 
except  possibly  Job,  that  needed  more  revision% 
and  retranslation  than  the  Song  of  Songs,  and 
for  the  closer  approach  to  its  dramatic  struc- 
ture, made  by  the  revisers  of  1884,  we  should 
be  grateful. 

Concerning  the  external  history  of  the  poem, 
the  mutations  in  its  literary  form,  our  words 
need  not  be  many.  The  ordinary  reader  of 
the  English  Bible  notices  that  in  the  version 
of  1884,  not  only  the  Song  of  Songs,  but 
the  books  of  Job,  Psalms,  Proverbs,  Lamenta- 
tions,   and    even    parts   of   Deuteronomy   and 


122  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

Judges,  are  printed  in  a  fashion  that  reveals, 
to  some  extent,  the  poetic  structure  of  the 
original.  Easily  distinguishable  to  the  eye 
from  the  mass  of  prose,  even  the  song  of 
Lamech  stands  out  like  a  crystal  of  garnet  in 
its  bed  of  rock. 

Much  as  has  already  been  done  towards  im- 
proving the  outward  guise,  as  well  as  develop- 
ing the  real  meaning  and  inward  spirit  of  the 
sacred  writings,  more  yet  remains  to  be  ac- 
complished. The  researches  of  scholars  into 
the  literary  history  of  Israel,  into  the  nature 
of  the  Hebrew  language,  and  their  prolonged 
critical  examination  of  the  texts,  have  revealed 
beauties  of  structure  and  artistic  forms  never 
dreamed  of  since  this  vehicle  of  revelation 
became  a  dead  language.  Even  yet,  with  all 
•the  wealth  of  scholarship  lavished  upon  the 
subject,  the  record  of  the  psalmists,  prophets, 
and  poets  of  the  Old  Testament  still  remains 
like  the  negative  of  a  photograph  which  has 
been  imperfectly  developed.  A  version,  a 
translation,  is  like  a  copy  printed  from  the 
original,  in  which  clearness  of  impression, 
tone,  light,  and  shade,  and  all  the  details  that 
go  to  form  a  perfect  picture,  are  according  to 
the  skill  and  resources  of  the  operator.  Other 
exquisite  poems,  now  unrecognizable  as  such 
in  the  common  prose  of  the  Old  Testament, 


HISTORY  OF  THE  BOOK  ITSELF.         12$ 

are  yet  to  stand  out  clearly  in  a  perfected  ver- 
sion. 

The  student  of  the  English  Bible  may  ask 
how  it  came  to  pass  that  the  poetry  of  the  He- 
brews was  turned  into  prose.  How  happened 
it  that  the  mass  even  of  Jewish  worshipers  in 
modern  times,  though  hearing  the  sacred  rolls 
read  in  the  synagogue  so  often,  never  sus- 
pected the  beauty  of  the  real  form  within  the 
words  they  listened  to  or  chanted  ?  Like  the 
men  of  two  centuries  ago  who  looked  upon  a 
fossil  as  only  a  freak  of  nature,  or  an  Oriental 
shepherd  who  to-day  feeds  his  fiock  ignorantly 
among  Corinthian  capitals  or  cuneiform  in- 
scriptions, there  was  no  suspicion  of  the  origi- 
nal purpose  and  the  actual  truth.  Utterly  lost 
as  to  its  intrinsic  charms,  the  Song  of  Songs, 
as  read  alike  in  the  synagogue  in  medieval  and 
modern  times,  and  in  the  English  Bible,  was 
like  the  mounds  of  earth  which  in  Egypt  and 
Chaldea  cover  grand  ruins. 

The  story  of  decay,  ruin,  sleep,  and  resurrec- 
tion of  the  exquisite  poem  of  the  Canticle  is 
somewhat  like  that  of  an  ancient  city,  except 
that  the  lapses  happened  under  guardians  and 
not  under  enemies.  Composed  probably  in 
the  age  of  classic  Hebrew  in  northern  Israel, 
its  delicate  allusions  and  local  color  were  for- 
gotten in  later  centuries.     When,  too,  Hebrew 


124  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

ceased  to  be  spoken  and  became  a  dead  lan- 
guage, lost  to  poets  and  original  writers,  and 
only  a  corpse  to  be  embalmed  or  dissected  by 
scribes  and  dogmatists,  its  poetry  was  forgot- 
ten. The  ear  and  eye  of  proof-text  hunter 
and  disputant  of  words  became  dull  to  literary 
beauties  and  harmonies,  and  the  cast  of  mind 
common  to  the  Jews  was  that  of  the  Chinese 
scholars  to-day,  between  whom  and  the  post- 
biblical  Hebrews  there  are  surprising  points 
of  likeness. 

Yet  these  men  of  Talmud-making  times 
were,  after  all,  only  famous  according  as  they 
lifted  up  axes  upon  thick  trees,  and  reduced 
the  living  forest  of  Hebrew  inspired  literature 
to  a  mass  of  dead  timber.  They  did  indeed 
preserve  this  timber  most  carefully  by  an  elab- 
orately artificial  system.  The  traditional  pro- 
nunciation of  the  words  of  the  Scriptures  was 
embalmed  in  a  remarkable  system  of  dots, 
dashes,  and  other  diacritical  marks  represent- 
ing vowels,  and  which  to  the  eye  appear  not 
vastly  different  from  the  telegraphic  alphabet. 
These  tiny  marks  written  outside  the  letter,  or 
inside  of  its  "  bosom "  without  touching  its 
outline,  represent  the  vowels,  double  the  con- 
sonants, and  otherwise  preserve  or  affect  the 
sense  of  the  writing.  Yet  after  the  best  is 
said   that  can   be  said  about  this  Massorctic 


HISTORY  OF  THE  BOOK  ITSELF.         12$ 

or  traditional  system,  it  represents  tradition, 
and  the  tradition  only  of  a  time  later  than 
the  period  when  the  Hebrew  was  a  living  lan- 
guage. Providentially,  it  may  be,  this  highly 
artificial  system,  the  growth  of  centuries,  pre- 
served from  absolute  extinction  the  Hebrew 
records. 

As  if,  however,  the  change  from  a  living  to 
a  dead  language  were  not  enough,  the  artistic 
beauty  of  Hebrew  poetry  was  still  further  de- 
stroyed by  the  new  and  peculiar  use  of  the 
Scriptures  in  the  synagogue.  Now  came  the 
blows  of  hammers  on  the  carved  work.  Any 
one  who  attends  upon  the  modern  worship  of 
the  Jews  knows  how  large  a  part  of  the  service 
consists  of  chanting  by  the  congregation,  or 
reading  of  the  rolls  by  the  preacher,  who  is  a 
"reader  of  the  law."  When  the  utterances 
and  writings  of  the  holy  men  of  Israel  were  no 
longer  stern  law,  eloquent  prophecy,  or  exqui- 
site poetry,  when  inspiration  had  ceased,  when 
temple  and  sacrifices  were  no  more,  and  mere 
erudition  or  tradition-making  occupied  the  He- 
brew wise  men,  then  the  whole  body  of  Scrip- 
ture was  reduced  to  a  mass  of  "  edifying " 
reading,  or  material  for  synagogue  chants. 
The  living  word  of  God  was  thus  turned  into  a 
formal  liturgy,  the  exponent  of  fossilized  Jew- 
ish orthodoxy. 


126  HISTORY  AND    CRITICISM. 

To  fit  this  artificial  method  of  using  the  in- 
spired Word,  an  elaborate  system  of  marks, 
tones,  and  accents  was  gradually  developed  and 
set  upon  the  Scripture  text ;  at  first  honestly, 
on  it  but  not  of  it.  As  cunningly  as  a  spider 
weaves  its  web  over  a  flower-bed  was  this 
wonderful  system  which  facilitated  cantillation 
woven  over  the  ancient  texts.  In  time,  these 
readijig  marks  became  Holy  Scripture  to  the  peo- 
ple. The  old  Bible  of  Jesus  and  Paul  and  John 
was  transformed  to  the  popular  mind  into  a  dead 
unity  of  orthodox  and  edifying  reading  matter. 
Its  marvelous  diversity  of  literary  form  was 
forgotten  in  dull  uniformity.  Jews  and  Chris- 
tians alike  came  to  believe  in  the  divine  inspi- 
ration even  of  this  double  system  of  points  and 
accents,  which  as  with  axes  and  hammers  had 
broken  down  the  carved  work  of  the  once 
splendid  temple  of  living  literature.  For  cen- 
turies the  marvelous  beauties  of  form,  and  the 
spirit  and  meaning  of  their  ancestral  poetry, 
were  forgotten  even  by  the  Jews  themselves. 
Practically  unknown  to  Christian  scholars  un- 
til the  Reformation  period,  the  Hebrew  re- 
mained unstudied,  and  the  Church  inherited 
unsuspectingly  the  vast  mass  of  Jewish  tradi- 
tion. Even  when  the  language  of  the  Old 
Testament  was  studied  in  the  universities  of 
Europe  and  America,  it  was  in  the  spirit  of  the 


HISTORY  OF  THE  BOOK  ITSELF.         12/ 

scribes  and  lawyers,  against  whom  Jesus  con- 
stantly sent  the  shafts  of  his  criticism. 

Hence,  though  there  was  vast  erudition,  and 
mighty  stores  in  the  memory,  and  much  stuff- 
ing of  texts  into  dogmatic  cartridges,  there  was 
little  real  understanding  of  the  Bible  as  litera- 
ture. It  has  been  only  during  the  past  century 
that  the  critical  and  comparative  methods,  so 
commended  of  our  Lord  Jesus,  have  been 
adopted  by  scholars.  The  fruit  of  the  toil  of 
the  great  Hebraists  is  now  before  us,  and  into 
their  labors  we  may  wisely  enter.  In  the  Re- 
vised Version  of  1884,  a  very  cautious  and  ul- 
tra-conservative use  of  the  materials  accumu- 
lated has  been  made  use  of  in  the  text,  though 
a  more  generous  and  courageous  utilization  of 
them  is  found  in  the  margin.  For  even  this 
result,  compromise  though  it  be,  we  ministers 
and  Bible  readers  may  be  thankful.  The  day 
may  yet  come  when  this  one  of  the  deathless 
literatures  of  the  world  may  be  restored  to  us. 
To  the  recovery  of  the  Old  Testament  as 
matchless  literature,  as  a  temple  of  glory  and 
delights  into  which  even  the  ordinary  English 
reader  may  enter  to  behold  a  miracle  of  purity, 
beauty,  and  divine  love,  the  Revision  of  1884 
has  grandly  contributed.  Whether  it  shall  be 
accepted  in  its  present  form  or  not,  it  will  serve, 
nay  it    has    already  served,  to  overthrow   the 


128  HISTORY  AND   CRITICISM. 

idols  that  have  too  long  held  their  place  in  the 
Christian  church,  like  the  Baalim  beside  Jeho- 
vah's altar.  The  revisers  have  not  only  helped 
to  show  us  that  he  who  builded  the  house  hath 
more  honor  than  the  house,  but  that  He  that 
built  all  things  is  God. 


PART  II. 

THE  TEXT    IN   THE   REVISED   VERSION. 
THE  REVISED  VERSION   OF  A.  D.    18S4  * 


1  THE  SONG  OF  SONGS. 

(which  is  Solomon's.) 

ACT   I.     SCENE   I. 

(/«  the  women's  quarters  of  the  royal  tents.     Court  Ladies  and 
the  Skulamite.) 

COURT   LADY. 

2  Let  him  kiss  me  with  the  kisses  of  his  mouth  : 
For  thy  love  is  better  than  wine. 

CHORUS. 

3  Thine  ointments  have  a  goodly  fragrance ; 
Thy  name  is  as  ointment  poured  forth  ; 
Therefore  do  the  ^  virgins  love  thee. 

SOLO. 

4  Draw  me  ; 

*  Unaltered  as  to  words,  except  in  chapter  iv.  5-7. 
^  Or,  maidens. 


130      TEXT  IN  THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

CHORUS. 

we  will  run  after  thee  : 

SOLO. 

The  king  hath  brought  me  into  his  chambers  : 

CHORUS. 

We  will  be  glad  and  rejoice  in  thee, 
We  will  make  mention  of  thy  love  more  than  of 
wine  : 
*  Rightly  do  they  love  thee. 

SHULAMITE. 

5  I  am  black, 

CHORUS. 

but  comely, 

SHULAMITE. 

O  ye  daughters  of  Jerusalem. 
As  the  tents  of  Kedar, 

CHORUS. 

as  the  curtains  of  Solomon. 

SHULAMITE. 

6  Look  not  upon  me,  because  I  am  swarthy, 
Because  the  sun  hath  -  scorched  me. 

My  mother's  sons  were  incensed  against  me, 
They  made  me  keeper  of  the  vineyards  ; 
But  mine  own  vineyard  have  I  not  kept. 

'  Or,  In  uprightness.  ^  Or,  looked  upon. 


THE  SONG   OF  SONGS.  131 

7  Tell  me,  O  thou  whom  my  soul  loveth, 
Where    thou   feedest   thy  JJock,    where    thou 

makest  //  to  rest  at  noon  : 
For  why  should  I  be  as  one  that  ^  is  veiled 
Beside  the  flocks  of  thy  companions  ? 

CHORUS. 

8  If  thou  know  not,  O  thou  fairest  among  women, 
Go  thy  way  forth  by  the  footsteps  of  the  flock. 
And  feed  thy  kids  beside  the  shepherds'  tents. 

SCENE  II. 
{Royal  tent.     Solomon  and  the  S/iulamite.) 

SOLOMON. 

9  I  have  compared  thee,  O  "^  my  love, 
*  To  a  steed  in  Pharaoh's  chariots. 

10  Thy  cheeks  are  comely  with  plaits  of  hair , 
Thy  neck  with  strings  of  jewels. 

11  We  will  make  thee  plaits  of  gold 
With  studs  of  silver. 

SHULAMrrE. 

12  While  the  king  sat  at  his  table. 

My  spikenard  sent  forth  its  fragrance. 

13  My  beloved  is  unto  me  as  a  *  bundle  of  myrrh, 
That  lieth  betwixt  my  breasts. 

1  Most  ancient  versions  have,  wandereth. 

2  Or,  7ny  friend  (and  so  throughout). 
8  Or,  To  the  steeds.  Or,  To  my  steed. 
*  Or,  bag. 


132       TEXT  IN  THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

14  My  beloved  is  unto  me  as  a  cluster  of  ^henna- 

flowers 
In  the  vineyards  of  En-gedi. 

SOLOMON. 

15  Behold,  thou  art  fair,  my  love  j  behold,  thou  art 

fair ; 
"^  Thine  eyes  are  as  doves. 

SHULAMITE. 

16  Behold,  thou  art  fair,  my  beloved,  yea,  pleasant : 
Also  our  couch  is  green. 

SOLOMON. 

17  The  beams  of  our  'house  are  *  cedars, 
And  our  rafters  are  *  firs. 

2 

SHULAMITE. 

1  I  am  a  *^  rose  of  '  Sharon, 
A  lily  of  the  valleys. 

SOLOMON. 

2  As  a  lily  among  thorns, 

So  is  my  love  among  the  daughters. 

SHULAMITE. 

3  As  the  apple  tree  among  the  trees  of  the  wood, 
So  is  my  beloved  among  the  sons. 

^  Heb.  copher.  ^  Or,  Thou  hast  doves'  eyes. 

*  Or,  houses.  *  Or,  0/ cedar  .  .  .  of  fir. 

^  Or,  cypresses.  ^  Heb.  habazzeleth,  the  autumn  crocus. 

^  Or,  the  plain. 


THE  SONG  OF  SONGS.  1 33 

^I  sat  down  under  his  shadow  with  great  delight, 
And  his  fruit  was  sweet  to  my  taste. 

4  He  brought  me  to  the  ^  banqueting  house, 
And  his  banner  over  me  was  love. 

5  Stay  ye   me   with   "raisins,    comfort   me   with 

apples  : 
For  I  am  sick  of  love. 

6  *  His  left  hand  is  under  my  head, 

And  his  right  hand  doth  embrace  me. 

7  I  adjure  you,  O  daughters  of  Jerusalem, 
By  the  ^  roes,  and  by  the  hinds  of  the  field, 
That  ye  stir  not  up,  nor  awaken  love, 
Until  it  please. 


ACT   II.     SCENE   I. 
(  T%e  Shulamite's  reminiscence  of  her  lover's  visit.) 

SHULAMITE. 

8  The  voice  of  my  beloved  !  behold,  he  cometh, 
Leaping  upon  the  mountains,  skipping  upon  the 

hills. 

9  My  beloved  is  like  a  ®  roe  or  a  young  hart : 
Behold,  he  standeth  behind  our  wall, 

He  looketh  in  at  the  windows, 

*  Heb.  /  delighted  and  sat  down  etc. 

2  Hth.  house  0/ wine.  '  Heh.  cakes  o/raisitis, 

*  Or,  Let  his  left  handht  etc.         ^  Or,  gazelles. 
'  Or,  gazelle. 


134      TEXT  IN   THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

He  ^  sheweth  himself  through  the  lattice. 

10  My  beloved  spake,  and  said  unto  me, 

THE   LOVER. 

"  Rise  up,  my  love,  my  fair  one,  and  come  away. 

11  For,  lo,  the  winter  is  past, 
The  rain  is  over  and  gone  ; 

The  flowers  appear  on  the  earth  ; 
The  time  of  the  ^singing  of  birds  is  come, 
And  the  voice  of   the    turtle  is   heard  in   our 
land  ; 

13  The  fig  tree  ripeneth  her  green  figs, 
And  the  vines  are  in  blossom, 
They  give  forth  their  fragrance. 

Arise,  my  love,  my  fair  one,  and  come  away. 

14  O  my  dove,  that  art  in  the  clefts  of  the  rock,  in 

the  covert  of  the  steep  place, 
Let  me  see  thy  countenance,  let  me  hear  thy 

voice ; 
For  sweet  is  thy  voice,  and  thy  countenance  is 

comely." 

SONG. 

15  "Take  us  the  foxes,  the  little   foxes,  that  spoil 

the  vineyards  ; 
For  our  vineyards  are  in  blossom." 

SHULAMITE. 

16  My  beloved  is  mine,  and  I  am  his  : 
He  feedeth  his  flock  among  the  lilies. 

*  Or,  glartceth  through.  "^  Or,  pruning  of  vines. 


THE  SONG  OF  SONGS.  I  3  5 

17  ^  Until  the  day '^  be  cool,  and  the  shadows  flee 
away, 
Turn,  my  beloved,  and  be  thou  like  a  '  roe  or  a 

young  hart 
Upon  the  *  mountains  of  ^  Bether. 

SCENE    II. 
(/«  a  dream,  the  Shulamite  seeks  and  finds  her  lover. ) 

3 

1  By  night  on  my  bed  I  sought  him  whom  my 

soul  loveth  : 
I  sought  him,  but  I  found  him  not. 

2  /  said,  "  I  will  rise  now,  and  go  about  the  city, 
In  the  streets  and  in  the  broad  ways, 

I  will  seek  him  whom  my  soul  loveth :  " 
I  sought  him,  but  I  found  him  not. 

3  The  watchmen  that  go  about  the  city  found  me  : 
To  whom  I  said,  "  Saw  ye  him  whom  my  soul 

loveth  ? " 

4  It  was  but  a  little  that  I  passed  from  them, 
When  I  found  him  whom  my  soul  loveth : 
I  held  him,  and  would  not  let  him  go, 

Until   I    had   brought    him   into    my   mother's 

house. 
And  into  the  chamber  of  her  that  conceived  me. 

1  Or,  Whe7i  the  day  is  cool. 

2  Or,  break.     Heb.  breathe. 
8  Or,  gazelle. 

*  Or,  mountains  of  separation. 
6  Perhaps,  the  spice  malobathron. 


136      TEXT  IN  THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

5  ^I  adjure  you,  O  daughters  of  Jerusalem, 
By  the  roes,  and  by  the  hinds  of  the  field, 
That  ye  stir  not  up,  nor  awaken  love, 
Until  it  please. 

ACT   III.     SCENE  I. 

(A  royal  procession  in  the  streets  of  yerusalem.     Citizens 
talking.) 

CHORUS   OF   PEOPLE. 

6  Who  is  this  that  cometh  up  out  of  the  wilder- 

ness like  pillars  of  smoke. 
Perfumed  with  myrrh  and  frankincense, 
With  all  powders  of  the  merchant  ? 

CITIZEN. 

7  Behold,  it  is  the  litter  of  Solomon ; 
Threescore  mighty  men  are  about  it, 
Of  the  mighty  men  of  Israel. 

CITIZEN. 

8  They  all  handle  the  sword,  and  are  expert  in 

war  : 
Every  man  hath  his  sword  upon  his  thigh, 
Because  of  fear  in  the  night. 

CITIZEN. 

9  King  Solomon  made  himself  a  *  palanquin 
Of  the  wood  of  Lebanon. 

10  He  made  the  pillars  thereof  of  silver, 

1  See  ch.  ii,  7.  2  Or,  car  0/ state. 


THE  SONG   OF  SONGS.  1 37 

The   bottom  thereof  of  gold,  the  seat  of  it  of 

purple, 
The  midst  thereof  being  ^  paved  with  love, 
From  the  daughters  of  Jerusalem. 

CHORUS  OF  PEOPLE. 

II  Go  forth,  O  ye  daughters  of  Zion,  and  behold 

king  Solomon, 
With    the   crown   wherewith    his    mother   hath 

crowned  him  in  the  day  of  his  espousals. 
And  in  the  day  of  the  gladness  of  his  heart. 

SCENE   II. 
{Solomon's  visitto  the  Shulamite  in  the  palace  in  Jerusalem.) 

4 

SOLOMON. 

1  Behold,  thou  art  fair,  my  love ;  behold,  thou  art 

fair; 
'''  Thine  eyes  are  as  doves  behind  thy  ^  veil : 
Thy  hair  is  as  a  flock  of  goats, 
That  ^lie  along  the  side  of  mount  Gilead. 

2  Thy  teeth  are  like  a  flock  of  ewes  that  are  newly 

shorn. 
Which  are  come  up  from  the  washing ; 
*  Whereof  every  one  hath  twins, 
And  none  is  bereaved  among  them. 

1  Or,  inlaid.  ^  Or,  Thou  hast  doves'  eyes. 

8  Or,  locks.  *  Or,  appear  on  mount  Gilead. 

^  Or,  Which  are  all  of  them  in  pairs. 


T38       TEXT  IN  THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

3  Thy  lips  are  like  a  thread  of  scarlet, 
And  thy  ^  mouth  is  comely  : 

Thy  temples  are  like  a  piece  of  a  pomegranate 
Behind  thy  '^  veil. 

4  Thy  neck  is  like  the  tower  of  David  builded  *  for 

an  armoury, 
Whereon  there  hang  a  thousand  bucklers. 
All  the  shields  of  the  mighty  men. 

5  Thy  two  breasts  are  like  two  fawns  that  are  twins 

of  a  *  roe. 
7  Thou  art  all  fair,  my  love ; 
And  there  is  no  spot  in  thee. 

SHULAMITE. 

My  beloved  is  mine,  and  I  am  his,  * 
Who  feedeth  his  flock  among  the  lilies. 

6  ^  Until   the  day  be  cool,  and   the   shadows   flee 

away, 
I  will  get  me  to  the  mountain  of  myrrh, 
And  to  the  hill  of  frankincense. 

^  Or,  speech.  2  Qx,  locks.  *  Or,  with  turrets. 

*  Or,  gazelle.      '      ^  See  ch.  ii.  17. 

*  For  the  re-arrangement  of  the  text  in  verses  5-7,  see 
pages  204-207. 


THE  SONG   OF  SONGS.  1 39 

SCENE   III. 

{^The  Skulamite  and  her  lover ^  in  ideal  interview.^ 

THE  LOVER. 

8  "  Come  with  me  from  Lebanon,  my  bride, 
With  me  from  Lebanon  : 

^  Look  from  the  top  of  Amana, 
From  the  top  of  Senir  and  Hermon, 
From  the  Hons'  dens, 
From  the  mountains  of  the  leopards. 

9  Thou  hast  '^ravished   my  heart,  my  sister,  my 

bride  ; 
Thou  hast   '^ravished   my  heart  with  'one   of 

thine  eyes, 
With  one  chain  of  thy  neck. 

10  How  fair  is  thy  love,  my  sister,  my  bride  ! 
How  much  better  is  thy  love  than  wine  ! 

And  the  smell  of  thine  ointments  than  all  man- 
ner of  spices  ! 

11  Thy  lips,  O  my  bride,  *drop  as  the  honeycomb  : 
Honey  and  milk  are  under  thy  tongue  ; 

And  the  smell  of  thy  garments  is  like  the  smell 
of  Lebanon. 

12  A  garden  *shut  up  is  my  sister,  my  bride  ; 
A  ^  spring  shut  up,  a  fountain  sealed. 

^  Or,  Go.  2  Ox ,  given  me  courage, 

*  Or,  one  \o6kfrom  thine  eyes. 

*  Or,  drop  honey.  6  Heb.  barred. 

*  Or,  according  to  many  ancient  autliorities,  garden. 


I40      TEXT  IN  THE   REVISED    VERSION. 

13  Thy  shoots  are  *  an  orchard  of  pomegranates, 

with  precious  fruits ; 
Henna  with  spikenard  plants, 

14  Spikenard  and  saffron, 

Calamus  and  cinnamon,  with  all  trees  of  frank- 
incense ; 
Myrrh  and  aloes,  with  all  the  chief  spices. 

15  Thou  art  a  fountain  of  gardens, 
A  well  of  living  waters. 

And  flowing  streams  from  Lebanon." 

SHULAMITE. 

16  Awake,  O  north  wind  ;  and  come,  thou  south  ; 
Blow  upon  my  garden,  that  the  spices  thereof 

may  flow  out. 
Let  my  beloved  come  into  his  garden, 
And  eat  his  precious  fruits. 


THE  LOVER. 

I  "  I  am  come  into  my  garden,  my  sister,  my  bride  : 
I  have  gathered  my  myrrh  with  my  '  spice ; 
I  have  eaten  my  honeycomb  with  my  honey ; 
I  have  drunk  my  wine  with  my  milk. 
\Aside.'\     Eat,  O  friends  \ 
Drink,  yea,  drink  abundantly,  'O  beloved." 

'  Ox,  a  paradise.  ^  Ox,  balsam.  '  Ox,  of  love. 


THE  SONG   OF  SONGS.  I4I 

SCENE   IV. 
{First  Dream  of  the  Shulamite.) 

SHULAMITE. 

2^1  was  asleep,  but  my  heart  waked  : 

It   is  the  voice   of  my   beloved  that  knocketh, 
saying, 

THE  LOVER. 

"Open  to  me,  my  sister,  my  love,  my  dove,  my 
'  undefiled  : 
For  my  head  is  filled  with  dew, 
My  locks  with  the  drops  of  the  night." 

SHULAMITE. 

3  I  have  put  off  my  coat ;  how  shall  I  put  it  on  ? 

I  have  washed  my  feet ;  how  shall  I  defile  them  ? 

4  My  beloved  put  in  his  hand  by  the  hole  0/  the 

door, 
And  my  ^  heart  was  moved  *  for  him. 

5  I  rose  up  to  open  to  my  beloved  ; 
And  my  hands  dropped  with  myrrh. 
And  my  fingers  with  liquid  myrrh. 
Upon  the  handles  of  the  bolt. 

6  I  opened  to  my  beloved  ; 

But  my  beloved  had  ^  withdrawn  himself,  and  was 

gone. 
My  soul  '  had  failed  me  when  he  spake  : 

1  Or,  /  sleep,  but  my  heart  waketh. 

"  B  eh.  perfect.  ^  Heh.  bowels, 

*  According  to  many  MSS.,  wit/tin  me. 

*  Or,  turned  away.  «  Heb.  went  forth. 


142      TEXT  IN  THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

I  sought  him,  but  I  could  not  find  him ; 
I  called  him,  but  he  gave  me  no  answer. 

7  The  watchmen  that  go  about  the  city  found  me, 
They  smote  me,  they  wounded  me  ; 

The  keepers  of  the  walls  took  away  my  *  mantle 
from  me. 

TO   THE   LADIES. 

8  I  adjure  you,  O  daughters  of  Jerusalem,  if  ye 

find  my  beloved, 

*  That  ye  tell  him,  that  I  am  sick  of  love. 

ACT   IV.     SCENE   I. 
{Dialogue  about  the  Belo7)ed.) 

CHORUS  OF   LADIES. 

9  What  is  thy  beloved  more  than  another  beloved, 
O  thou  fairest  among  women  .'' 

What  is  thy  beloved  more  than  another  beloved, 
That  thou  dost  so  adjure  us .-' 

SHULAMITE. 

10  My  beloved  is  white  and  ruddy, 
'The  chiefest  among  ten  thousand. 

11  His  head  is  as  the  most  fine  gold, 

His  locks  are  *  bushy,  and  black  as  a  raven. 

12  His  eyes  are  like  doves  beside  the  water  brooks ; 
Washed  with  milk,  and  ^  fitly  set. 

1  Or,  veil. 

2  Heb.  What  will  ye  tell  him  ?     That,etc. 
'  Heb.     /Marked  out  by  a  banner. 

*  Or,  curling.  '  Or,  sitting  by  full  streams. 


THE  SONG  OF  SONGS.  1 43 

13  His  cheeks  are  as  a  bed  of  ^  spices,  as  ^  banks  of 

sweet  herbs : 
His  lips  are  as  lilies,  dropping  liquid  myrrh. 

14  His  hands  are  as  ^  rings  of  gold  set  with  ^  beryl : 
His  body  is  as  ^  ivory  work  ^overlaid  with  sap- 
phires. 

15  His  legs  are  as  pillars  of  marble,  set  upon  sock- 

ets of  fine  gold  : 
His   aspect  is   like  Lebanon,  excellent   as  the 
cedars. 

16  His  '^  mouth  is  most  sweet :  yea,  he  is  altogether 

lovely. 

This  is  my  beloved,  and  this  is  my  friend, 
O  daughters  of  Jerusalem. 

6 

CHORUS   OF   LADIES. 

1  Whither  is  thy  beloved  gone, 
O  thou  fairest  among  women  ? 
Whither  hath  thy  beloved  turned  him. 
That  we  may  seek  him  with  thee  t 

SHULAMITE. 

2  My  beloved  is    gone  down  to  his  garden,   to 

the  beds  of  ^  spices, 
To  feed  in  the  gardens,  and  to  gather  lilies. 

1  Or,  balsam.  2  q^^  towers  of  perfumes. 

^  Or,  cylinders.  *  Or,  topaz. 

'  Or,  bright  ivory.  6  Qr,  encrusted. 
'  Ox,  speech.     Heh.  palate. 


144      TEXT  IN  THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

3  ^  I  am  my  beloved's,  and  my  beloved  is  mine : 
He  feedeth  his  flock  among  the  lilies. 


SCENE   II. 

(Solonioti's  third  wooing.    His  praises  of  the  Shulamite.) 

SOLOMON. 

4  Thou  art  beautiful,  O  my  love,  as  Tirzah, 
Comely  as  Jerusalem, 

Terrible  as  ^an  army  with  banners. 

5  Turn  away  thine  eyes  from  me. 
For  they  ^have  overcome  me. 

*  Thy  hair  is  as  a  flock  of  goats, 
That  lie  along  the  side  of  Gilead. 

6  ^Thy  teeth  are  like  a  flock  of  ewes. 
Which  are  come  up  from  the  washing ; 
Whereof  every  one  hath  twins, 

And  none  is  bereaved  among  them. 

7  ®  Thy  temples   are   like   a    piece   of    a   pome- 

granate 
Behind  thy  veil. 

8  There    are    threescore    queens,   and    fourscore 

concubines. 
And  ^  virgins  without  number. 

9  My  dove,  my  ^  undefiled,  is  but  one  ; 
She  is  the  only  one  of  her  mother ; 

*  See  chap.  ii.  i6.  ^  Heb.  bannered  hosts. 

*  Or,  make  me  afraid.  *  See  chap.  iv.  i. 
^  See  chap.  iv.  2.  *  See  chap.  iv.  3. 
"^  Or,  maidens.  *  Heb.  perfect. 


THE  SONG   OF  SONGS.  1 45 

She  is  the  ^  choice  one  of  her  that  bare  her. 
The     daughters     saw     her,    and     called     her 

blessed  ; 
Yea^  the  queens  and  the  concubines,  and  they 

praised  her. 

SCENE  III. 

( The  Shulamite  narrates  an  incident  in  her  life,  and  dances 
before  the  ladies  of  the  court!) 

CHORUS   OF   LADIES. 

10  Who  is  she  that  looketh  forth  as  the  morning, 
Fair  as  the  moon, 

*  Clear  as  the  sun, 

*  Terrible  as  an  army  with  banners  ? 

SHULAMITE. 

Ill  went  down  into  the  garden  of  nuts, 
To  see  the  green  plants  of  the  valley, 
To  see  whether  the  vine  budded, 
And  the  pomegranates  were  in  flower. 

12  Or  ever  I  was  aware,  my  *  soul  ^set  me 
Among  \kiQ.  chariots  of  my  ®  princely  people. 

CHORUS. 

13  Return,  return,  O  Shulamite; 

Return,  return,  that  we  may  look  upon  thee. 

1  Or,  Pure.  2  Or,  pure. 

8  See  ver.  4.  ♦  Or,  desire. 

'  Or,  made  me  like  the  chariots  of  Ammi-nadib. 

*  Or,  uuilling. 


146      TEXT  IN  THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

SHULAMITE. 

Why  will  ye  look  upon  the  Shulamite  ? 

CHORUS. 

As  upon  the  dance  ^  of  Mahanaim. 


7 


(  The  ladies,  admiring  the  dancer.) 


1  How   beautiful    are    thy  '^  feet    in    sandals,    O 

prince's  daughter  ! 
*  The  joints  of  thy  thighs  are  like  jewels, 
The  work  of  the  hands  of  a  cunning  workman. 

2  Thy  navel  is  like  a  round  goblet. 

Wherein  no  mingled  wine  is  wanting: 
Thy  belly  is  like  an  heap  of  wheat 
Set  about  with  lilies. 

3  *Thy  two  breasts  are  like  two  fawns 
That  are  twins  of  a  roe. 

4  Thy  neck  is  like  the  tower  of  ivory ; 

Thine  eyes   as  the  pools  in    Heshbon,  by   the 

gate  of  Bath-rabbi m  ; 
Thy  nose  is  like  the  lower  of  Lebanon 
Which  looketh  toward  Damascus. 

5  Thine  head  upon  thee  is  like  Carmel, 
And  the  hair  of  thine  head  ^like  purple  ; 

The     king    is     held     captive    in     the    tresses 
thereof. 

*  Or,  of  two  companies.  ^  Or,  steps. 

8  Or,  Thy  rounded  thighs.  *  See  ch.  iv.  5. 

^  Some  ancient  versions  have,  like  the  purple  of  a  king, 
bound,  etc. 


THE  SONG  OF  SONGS.  1 47 

6  How  fair  and  how  pleasant  art  thou, 

0  love,  for  delights  ! 

7  This  thy  stature  is  like  to  a  palm  tree, 
And  thy  breasts  to  clusters  of  grapes. 

SOLOMON. 

8  I  said,  "  I  will  climb  up  into  the  palm  tree, 

1  will  take  hold  of  the  branches  thereof  : 
Let  thy  breasts  be  as  clusters  of  the  vine, 
And  the  smell  of  thy  ^  breath  like  apples  ; 

9  And  thy  ^  mouth  like  the  best  wine  "  — 

SHULAMITE  (interrupting). 

That  goeth  down  '  smoothly  for  my  beloved, 
*  Gliding    through   the   lips   of   those    that   are 
asleep. 

{Her  final  decision.") 

10  I  am  my  beloved's. 

And  his  desire  is  toward  me. 

SHULAMITE  (to  her  expected  lover). 

11  Come,  my   beloved,  let   us   go  forth   into  the 

field  ; 
Let  us  lodge  in  the  villages. 

12  Let  us  get  up  early  to  the  vineyards  ; 

Let  us  see  whether  the  vine  hath  budded,  and 
^  its  blossom  be  open, 

^  Heb.  nose.  ^  Helj.  palate.  8  Heb.  aright. 

*  Or,  Causing  the  lips  of  those  that  are  asleep  to  move  or 
speak. 

'  Or,  the  tender  grape  appear. 


148      TEXT  IN  THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

And  the  pomegranates  be  in  flower  : 
There  will  I  give  thee  my  love. 
13  The  ^  mandrakes  give  forth  fragrance, 

And  ^  at  our  doors  are  all  manner  of  precious 

fruits,  new  and  old, 
Which  I  have  laid  up  for  thee,  O  my  beloved. 


8 


1  Oh  that  thou  wert  as  my  brother, 
That  sucked  the  breasts  of  my  mother  ! 

Whe?i  I  should  find  thee  without,  I  would  kiss 

thee  ; 
Yea,  and  none  would  despise  me, 

2  I   would    lead   thee,  and  bring    thee   into   my 

mother's  house, 
*  Who  would  instruct  me  ; 
I  would  cause  thee  to  drink  of  spiced  wine, 
Of  the  ^  juice  of  my  pomegranate. 

3  ^  His  left  hand  should  be  under  my  head, 
And  his  right  hand  should  embrace  me. 

( To  the  ladies^ 

4  I  adjure  you,  O  daughters  of  Jerusalem, 
®  That  ye  stir  not  up,  nor  awaken  love, 

Until  it  please. 

1  See  Gen.  xxx.  14.  ^  Or,  over. 

"  Or,  That  thou  mightest.  *  Or,  sweet  wine. 

*  Sec  ch.  ii.  6,  7. 

*  Heb.  Why  should  ye  stir  tip  ?  or  why,  etc. 


THE  SONG   OF  SONGS.  1 49 

ACT  V.     SCENE  I. 

(The  Shepherd-lover  and   the  Shulatnite  approaching  their 
mountain  home.) 

CHORUS  OF  COUNTRY  PEOPLE. 

5  Who  is  this  that   cometh  up   from   the    wilder- 

ness, 
Leaning  upon  her  beloved  ? 

SHULAMITE. 

Under  the  apple  tree  I  awakened  thee 
There  thy  mother  was  in  travail  with  thee, 
There  was  she  in   travail   ^  that   brought   thee 
forth. 

(  The  bride's  prayer^ 

6  Set  me  as  a   seal  upon  thine  heart,   as  a  seal 

upon  thine  arm : 
For  love  is  strong  as  death  ; 
Jealousy  is  ^  cruel  as  ^  the  grave  : 
The  flashes  thereof  are  flashes  of  fire, 
*  A  very  flame  of  ^  the  Lord. 

7  Many  waters  cannot  quench  love, 
Neither  can  the  floods  drown  it : 

If  a  man  would  give   all  the   substance  of   his 

house  for  love, 
^  He  would  utterly  be  contemned. 

1  Or,  and.  2  Heb.  hard. 

'  Heb.  Sheol.  *  Or,  A  most  vehement  flame. 

6  Heb.  Jah.  «  Or,  //. 


150      TEXT  IN  THE  REVISED    VERSION. 

ACT   V.     SCENE   II. 
( The  Bride  and  her  brothers.     Parable  of  the  two  vineyards.) 

FIRST   BROTHER. 

8  We  have  a  little  sister, 
And  she  hath  no  breasts  : 
What  shall  we  do  for  our  sister 

In  the  day  when  she  shall  be  spoken  for  t 

SECOND    BROTHER. 

9  If  she  be  a  wall, 

We  will  build  upon  her  ^  a  turret  of  silver  : 

THIRD   BROTHER. 

And  if  she  be  a  door, 

We  will  inclose  her  with  boards  of  cedar. 

SHULAMITE. 

ID  I  '^am  a  wall,  and  my  breasts  like  the  towers 
thereof  : 
Then  was    I    in    his    eyes   as    one   that    found 
peace. 

11  Solomon  had  a  vineyard  at  Baal-hamon  ; 
He  let  out  the  vineyard  unto  keepers; 

Every  one  for  the  fruit  thereof   was   to  bring 
a  thousand //Vr^rj-  of  silver. 

12  My  vineyard,  which  is  mine,  is  before  me  : 
Thou,  O  Solomon,  shalt  have  the  thousand, 

1  Or,  battlements.  2  Qr,  was. 


THE  SONG   OF  SONGS.  1 5  I 

And  those   that   keep   the   fruit   thereof  two 
hundred. 


LOVER  AND   BRIDEGROOM. 

13  Thou  that  dwellest  in  the  gardens, 

The  companions  hearken  ^  for  thy  voice  : 
Cause  me  to  hear  it. 

SHULAMITE. 

14 'Make  haste,  my  beloved, 

And  be  thou  like  to  a  '  roe  or  to  a  young  hart 
Upon  the  mountains  of  spices. 
1  Or,  to.  2  Heb.  Flee.  «  Or,  gazelle. 


PART   III. 

STUDIES   AND   COMMENTS. 


ACT  I.     SCENE  I. 
THE   VINEYARD-GIRL    IN    THE    KING's    HAREM. 

Chapter  I.  i-8. 

The  curtain  rises  upon  a  scene  of  Orien- 
tal splendor.  It  is  springtime  in  the  land  of 
Issachar.  Solomon  and  the  royal  household 
are  on  a  pleasure  tour  in  the  northern  part  of 
his  dominions.  In  one  of  the  "fat  valleys" 
between  the  mountains  of  Tabor  and  Gilboa, 
near  the  hill  of  Little  Hermon,  the  royal  tents 
are  pitched.  Horses  and  chariots,  state-palan- 
quins, gorgeous  trappings,  and  brilliantly  uni- 
formed body-guards,  snow-white  pavilions  and 
luxuriant  camp  equipage,  compel  comparison 
with  the  loveliness  of  the  natural  foreground 
and  the  grandeur  of  the  distant  scenery. 

Vineyards,  wheat -fields,  and  olive  gardens 
full  of  life,  labor,  song,  and  color,  with  vine- 
clad  cottages  and  flocks  of  sheep  under  shade 


VINEYARD-GIRL  IN  KINGS  HAREM.     I  53 

in  sight  of  shepherds  fill  the  foreground.  It 
is  the  time  of  the  washing  and  shearing  of 
fleece,  and  busy  have  been  the  owners  of  the 
rams  and  ewes  at  the  Jordan  and  its  affluents. 
Rising  out  of  the  water,  and  frisking  up  the 
mountain  sides  of  Gilead  across  the  river,  their 
snowy  coats  glisten  in  the  distance,  contrasting 
with  the  sleek  black  hair  of  the  goats  that  lie 
or  gambol  along  the  mountain  side.  Every- 
where from  the  dove-cotes  is  heard  the  cooing: 
of  the  happy  pet-birds,  blending  with  the  soft 
voices  of  the  turtle  and  the  shy  rock-pigeon. 
The  dark-green  leaves  and  scarlet  blossoms  of 
the  pomegranate  adorn  the  gardens,  and  the 
air  is  laden  with  the  fragrance  of  gums,  grasses, 
and  all  manner  of  nature's  perfumes.  Afar  off 
gleams  the  snow-crown  of  "the  white  moun- 
tain," Lebanon  ;  westward  is  Carmel  and  the 
plain  of  Esdraelon  ;  while  southward  are  the 
ever-fertile  valleys  of  Ephraim,  and  to  the 
west  lie  the  Jordan  valley  and  the  hills  of 
Manasseh. 

Dazzling  to  the  eyes  of  the  rustics  must 
have  been  this  court  splendor  brought  into 
their  neighborhood.  Familiar  with  the  black 
goat's-hair  cloth  tents  of  the  Kedar  Ishma- 
elites  who  wandered  restlessly  from  place  to 
place,  they  had  as  yet  seen  no  such  upholstery 
and  pomp  as  that   of  Solomon's.     Those  who 


154  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

looked  within  these  temporary  palaces  of  lux- 
ury, or  even  caught  glimpses  of  the  interiors 
filled  with  ivory  and  jewels,  India  perfumes, 
and  strange  pets,  went  home  to  tell  wonderful 
stories  to  eager  listeners.  The  height  of  in- 
terest was  reached  when  it  was  bruited  about 
at  well-curb  and  evening  rest  that  a  maiden 
of  Shunem  had  been  invited  —  when  invita- 
tion meant  command,  and  disobedience  peril  — 
to  join  the  king's  harem.  What  a  dazzling 
vista  opened  to  the  imagination  of  the  country 
maids  and  vineyard  toilers,  as  they  thought  of 
one  of  their  number  established  amid  such 
magnificence,  with  no  hard  work  to  soil  the 
hands  or  exposure  to  brown  the  face,  with  ser- 
vants and  finest  clothing  and  perfume  and 
music  and  dancing  all  the  day  long.  All  that 
could  fascinate  youth,  when  the  senses  are 
most  keen,  and  fancy  is  most  warm,  and  day- 
dreams are  most  bright,  lay  in  the  royal  invita- 
tion. In  a  few  days  the  tents  would  be  broken 
up,  the  cavalcade  move  to  Jerusalem,  and  then 
the  young  girl  would  behold  the  splendors  of 
the  capital,  where  silver  and  gold  were  as  com- 
mon as  stones,  and  cedarwood  as  plentiful  as 
fig-mulberry  in  the  lowlands.  Who  would  not 
envy  the  good  fortune  of  their  neighbor  ?  But, 
let  us  glance  within. 

It   is   upon   the   royal   harem  that   the  poet 


VINEYARD-GIRL   IN  KINGS  HAREM.      1 55 

bids  us  look.  Out  of  his  mighty  host  of 
women  who  live  to  amuse  the  king,  he  has 
selected  as  part  of  his  traveling  household 
sixty  ladies  of  noble  rank,  eighty  of  the  grade 
called  pilcgesh  or  secondary  wives,  with  per- 
haps hundreds  of  fair  young  girls  who  are 
attendants,  musicians,  and  dancers,  together 
with  the  ordinary  women  servants.  Only  one 
idea,  one  ambition,  have  these  ladies  of  the 
court  :  it  is  to  please  Solomon,  to  enjoy  his 
favor,  his  condescension,  and  to  receive  tokens 
of  his  regard  in  gifts  or  the  honor  of  his 
presence.     Hear  them  ! 

Lady.  O  for  a  kiss  from  the  kisses  of  his 
mouth,  for  thy  love  is  better  than  wine. 

In  enthusiastic  agreement,  the  other  ladies 
join  in  the  praise  of  the  king. 

Chorus.  Sweet  is  the  fragrance  of  thy  perfumes, 
but  thy  name  itself  is  as  ointment  poured  out ;  be- 
cause of  this,  the  maidens  love  thee. 

Has  the  maid  of  Shunem  listened  to  these 
praises,  or  does  she  here  enter,  and  is  it  her 
voice  which  speaks  ? 

Solo.  The  king  has  brought  me  into  his  apart- 
ments. 

Chorus.  We  will  be  glad  and  rejoice  with  thee, 
we  will  celebrate  thy  caresses  more  than  wine  ; 
rightly  do  they  love  thee. 


156  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

Or  does  the  chorus  respond  to  a  wish  — 
since  the  words  might  be  rendered,  "  O  that 
the  king  would  bring  me  "  —  expressed  by  one 
longing  for  royal  fa\'or  ? 

Readers  may  differ  in  reproducing  the  first 
part  of  the  opening  scene  to  eye  and  ear,  but 
at  verse  fifth  the  Shulamite  speaks,  as  the  poet 
does,  with  no  uncertain  sound.  It  is  no  pallid 
beauty  of  the  harem,  but  a  child  of  out-door 
life  who  says,  probably  in  answer  to  their  in- 
quiring glances,  and  possibly  having  just  en- 
tered : 

"  I  am  dark  "  —  "but  comely,"  interrupt  the 
ladies. 

"O  ye  daughters  of  Jerusalem,"  continues 
the  Shulamite,  "  as  the  tents  of  Kedar  "  —  "  as 
the  curtains  of  Solomon,"  they  rejoin  flatter- 
ingly. 

In  her  own  eyes  she  is  sunburnt  and  swarthy, 
and  like  the  dark  goat's-hair  cloth  of  the  shep- 
herd's  tents  of  the  tribe  of  Kedar ;  but  they 
praise  her  rustic  beauty  as  comparable  with 
the  royal  upholstery. 

"  Look  not  in  disdain  upon  me,  because  I  am 
tanned,  because  the  sun  has  looked  hard  at  me. 
My  mother's  sons  were  severe  with  me,  they  made 
me  keeper  of  their  vineyards,  but  my  own  vineyard 
I  have  neglected  to  keep." 

Here  the  heroine  of   the   poem  gives  us  a 


VINEYARD-GIRL  IN  KING'S  HAREM.      15/ 

little  bit  of  autobiography.  In  terms  of  true 
Oriental  self-depreciation,  in  which  every  one, 
especially  a  girl,  is  trained  from  infancy  to 
speak,  she  has  described  her  neglected  per- 
sonal appearance,  which  seems  to  herself  in 
such  marked  contrast  with  that  of  the  hand- 
somely attired  and  soft-complexioned  women 
around  her.  In  the  full  dress  of  a  state  occa- 
sion, or  in  society  where  the  chief  work  of  life 
is  to  wear  fine  clothes,  even  a  man  feels  keenly 
the  pain  of  not  having  on  the  appropriate  gar- 
ments. How  much  more  a  woman,  to  whom 
the  love  of  beautiful  raiment  is  innate,  and  in 
whose  sex  the  tyranny  of  costume  is  relentless. 
For  one  like  the  girl  from  the  country,  who  is 
chosen  for  Solomon's  pleasure,  as  with  Esther 
for  Ahasuerus,  preparation  was  doubtless  made 
as  to  a  fitting  wardrobe,  but  yet  the  sun- 
browned  face  could  not  at  once  take  on  the 
more  delicate  and  pallid  hue  of  those  who  lived 
in  ease  within  doors. 

Rightly  or  wrongly,  some  one  is  to  blame 
for  this,  and  the  maiden  from  the  vineyards 
lets  us  into  another  secret  of  her  home  life,  as 
she  becomes  communicative  with  the  other 
women.  Her  step-brothers  —  so  we  take  them 
to  be,  for  she  calls  them  her  "  mother's,"  not 
her  father's,  sons  —  have  not  been  generous 
with  her.     Not  only  has  the  sun  been  scorch- 


158  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

ing  in  its  effect  upon  her  face,  but  the  heat  of 
their  anger  has  been  severe  against  her.  By  a 
pretty  play  on  words,  the  poet  places  her  be- 
tween two  fires.  So,  with  a  young  girl's  ex- 
aggeration, and  witli  prismatics  of  wit  which 
are  better  appreciated  in  the  Hebrew  than  in 
the  English,  the  author  introduces  the  step- 
brothers as  the  second  group  of  the  minor 
characters  in  the  cantata,  the  ladies  of  the 
harem  being  the  first.  Three  times  or  more  in 
the  piece  are  the  step-brothers  heard  from. 
These  burly  fellows,  hard-headed  countrymen 
as  they  seem  in  their  matter-of-fact  humor  and 
practical  view  of  things,  are  really  the  guard- 
ians of  their  "little  sister"  (viii.  8),  and  make 
not  only  her  behavior,  but  her  matrimonial 
prospects,  their  concern  (viii.  8-9). 

According  to  the  ancient  law  of  Israel,  to 
use  the  words  of  Ewald,  "  The  special  and 
most  natural  protectors  of  a  free  maiden  were, 
besides  her  parents,  her  brothers,  especially 
the  eldest  of  them,  who  often  showed  them- 
selves far  more  jealous  and  active  in  the  matter 
than  the  father  while  he  was  yet  alive.  This 
caused  the  betrothal  and  marriage  of  a  daugh- 
ter only  too  often  to  be  a  pecuniary  transaction 
between  these  protectors  and  their  future  hus- 
bands." 

This  we  sec  illustrated  especially  in  Genesis. 


VINEYARD-GIRL   IN  KING'S  HAREM.     1 59 

Here  in  the  Song,  it  seems,  the  brothers,  daz- 
zled by  the  honor,  and  perhaps  pleased  with 
the  worldly  or  financial  advantages,  have  con- 
sented to  have  their  step-sister  become  an  in- 
mate of  the  royal  household. 

This  allusion  to  herself  and  her  domestic 
history  is  only  a  parenthesis,  for  her  thoughts 
are  still  with  her  lover,  and  she  thus  addresses 
the  absent  one.  Is  it  in  silent  thought,  or  is 
she  overheard  murmurins^  to  herself  .'' 

"  Tell  me,  O  thou  whom  my  soul  loveth,  where 
thou  feedest  thy  flock,  where  thou  makest  it  rest  at 
noon  :  for  why  should  I  be  as  a  wanderer  beside 
the  flocks  of  thy  companions  ?  " 

In  this,  the  first  of  several  descriptions  of  the 
one  beloved  of  the  heroine  of  the  poem,  we 
read  the  pet  name  used  by  her  of  the  shepherd, 
but  never  of  Solomon.  He  is  pictured  here 
and  always  as  one  in  the  pasture,  or  on  the 
mountains,  never  as  a  dweller  in  a  city,  a  king, 
a  monarch,  or  one  busy  with  the  work  of  gov- 
ernment or  surrounded  with  luxury.  She  longs 
to  know  where  her  lover  is,  under  what  shadow 
of  a  great  rock,  or  beneath  what  wide-spreading 
tree,  he  has  been  driven  by  the  "  double  light  " 
and  intense  heat  of  noon  ;  but,  to  go  roaming 
among  the  shepherds  who  were  strangers  to 
her,  and  perhaps  free  in  their  remarks  about 
a   love-sick  girl,  to  find   his  particular    flock. 


l6o  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

would  expose  her  modest  feelings  to  a  severe 
trial. 

In  all  this,  the  Shulamite  talks  in  a  real 
country  dialect,  in  Galilean  speech  that  "  be- 
wrays "  her  Northern  origin,  as  surely  as  Peter's 
pronunciation  revealed  his  personality  to  the 
quick-eared  servant  girl  in  Herod's  palace  cen- 
turies afterward. 

The  city -bred  ladies,  overhearing  her  talking 
to  herself,  make  answer  to  the  rustic  maiden. 
Is  not  this  a  touch  of  sarcasm  or  jealousy,  pos-. 
sibly  of  contempt  for  her  lover's  occupation  .'' 
The  chief  lady  of  Solomon's  household  was  the 
daughter  of  Pharaoh  ;  and  very  possibly  the 
Egyptian,  to  whom  "  shepherds  were  an  abom- 
ination," set  the  fashion  at  Solomon's  court, 
and  the  chief  lady  shaped  the  views  of  the 
harem.     They  answer : 

"  If  you  do  not  really  know  in  secret,  you  prettiest 
of  women  in  the  world,  you  had  better  go  out 
among  the  hoof-tracks  left  by  the  flock,  and  feed 
your  kids  among  the  shepherds'  tents." 

In  other  words,  these  pampered  beauties 
deem  her  a  foolish  virgin  indeed  to  keep  think- 
ing of  a  plain  country  lad,  when  King  Solomon 
offers  her  a  place  in  his  royal,  albeit  rather 
miscellaneous,  affections.  In  their  reference 
to  kids  instead  of  lambs  in  the  shepherd's 
flock,  there  may  be  an  allusion  to  the  worship 


VINEYARD-GIKL   IN  KING'S  HAREM.      l6l 

of  the  Phoenician  goddess  Astarte,  or  Ash- 
taroth,  as  the  Hebrews  called  her.  In  the  rites 
of  this  moon-goddess  a  kid  was  the  emblem  of 
love.  The  pure  virgin  of  Shunem  was  a  devout 
servant  of  Jehovah,  while  many  of  the  women 
in  Solomon's  harem  were  idolaters  to  this 
Phoenician  Venus.  For  that  very  reason  they 
were  as  unable  to  understand  or  sympathize 
with  the  strict  principles  of  the  chaste  Shula- 
mite,  as  is  the  heathen  woman  of  to-day  in 
polygamy  to  enter  into  the  mind  of  the  Chris- 
tian maiden.  To  one  familiar  with  the  litera- 
ture, customs,  speech,  and  ideas  of  the  women 
who  live  where  idolatry  prevails,  and  the  rulers 
and  chief  men  of  the  country  keep  harems,  the 
amazing  pnrity  and  modesty  of  maidens  reared 
in  Christian  homes  is  like  a  revelation  from 
Heaven.  The  witness  of  the  stone-lore  of 
Tyre  and  Sidon  shows  that  not  only  did  Phoe- 
nician women  bear  such  names  as  "  Devoted  to 
Baal,"  but  that  many  of  them  were  consecrated 
to  impurity  by  vows  and  religious  rites  in  the 
temples  of  Astarte. 

Solomon  in  all  his  glory  was  not  arrayed  in 
spirit  like  this  fair  lily  of  the  northern  fields. 
Left  alone  by  the  women,  a  greater  trial  now 
awaits  her. 


ACT  I.     SCENE  II. 
THE   LILY    AMONG   THORNS. 

Chapter  I.  8-II.  7. 

A  NEW  character  appears  upon  the  scene 
and  speaks  for  the  first  time  in  verse  ninth. 
It  is  his  Imperial  Majesty,  Solomon  himself, 
suzerain  of  the  vassal  nations,  lord  of  all  Israel, 
commander  of  the  armies,  who  "  fills  the  places 
with  dead  bodies,"  whose  enemies  bite  the 
dust  in  death  at  his  word.  Who  can  resist 
him  who  has  sent  even  princes  to  their  grave 
under  the  assassin's  knife  ?  It  is  fearful  even 
to  think  of  crossing  his  will. 

The  Hebrew  emperor  is  a  judge  of  beauty. 
Having  a  host  of  fair  faces  daily  before  him, 
he  is  not  easily  led  captive  by  raven  tresses,  a 
rosy  cheek,  or  a  sparkling  eye.  Despite  her 
own  dispraise,  the  Shulamite  must  indeed  have 
graces  all  her  own  to  attract  this  jaded  man. 

"How  men  propose"  is  a  subject  of  peren- 
nial interest  to  women,  and  all  literature  has 
been  searched  to  find  pictures  of  the  wooing 
scene.  The  Bible  opens  to  our  view  more 
than  one  picture  of  ardent  swain  seeking  the 


THE  LILY  AMONG    THORNS.  1 63 

heart  and  hand  of  willing  maiden  in  pure  and 
honorable  love. 

Solomon  makes  love  in  a  business  way,  much 
as  a  purchaser  would  contract  for  a  perch  of 
building  stone,  or  a  cargo  of  provisions.  Sen- 
suality knows  no  eloquence,  but  purity  and  sin- 
cerity make  the  silver  tongue.  Critical  and 
unimpassioned,  yet  complimentary  and  polite, 
the  royal  voluptuary,  using  a  term  the  mean- 
ing of  which  hovers  between  "  companion  " 
and  "loved  one,"  thus  addresses  the  rustic 
damsel  : 

"  I  have  compared  thee,  my  friend,  to  steeds 
caparisoned  for  Pharaoh's  chariot.  Thy  cheeks 
are  comely  in  their  fringes  of  coins,  thy  neck  in  its 
necklace  of  beads.  We  will  make  thee  head-bands 
of  gold  and  a  necklace  of  knobs  of  silver." 

Think  not  the  king  a  jockey  because  he 
compares  his  lady  friend  to  one  of  his  mares, 
and  possibly  draws  the  imagery  of  his  prom- 
ises from  the  head-frame  and  gay  tassels  of 
his  noble  black  steed.  In  our  Western  eyes  it 
is  not  in  good  taste  to  compare  maiden,  sweet- 
heart, or  wife  to  a  horse.  The  Roman  poets, 
however,  did  it,  and  the  Arabs  do  it  yet,  the 
comparison  being  accepted  as  delightful  flat- 
tery. Remember,  too,  that  horses,  once  asso- 
ciated only  with  Egyptian  slavery  and  long 
forbidden  in  Israel,  were  at  this  time  new  and 


164  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

wonderful  things  in  the  cities  of  Israel.  It 
may  have  been  a  poet  of  Solomon's  time  who 
described  in  matchless  apostrophe  the  war- 
horse  in  the  book  of  Job.  Even  now,  the  love 
of  the  fleet  animal  sometimes  turns  a  man's 
thoughts  away  from  his  wife  and  family.  It 
is  not  certain  but  that  some  men  love  their 
pet  trotters  and  pacers  more  than  their  chil- 
dren, and  the  excitement  of  the  races  more 
than  the  simple  joys  of  home. 

To  the  Galilean  maiden,  adorned  it  may  be 
with  rich  braided  hair  within  a  simple  head- 
dress, bordered  perhaps  with  rows  of  bronze 
or  silver  coins,  and  her  neck  decorated  with 
uncostly  jewelry  made  by  Phoenician  bronze- 
smiths,  the  great  king  promises  golden  cir- 
clets, row  upon  row  of  gold  coin,  and  necklace 
damascened  with  points  of  silver  like  the  horse- 
bridles  of  his  cavalry.  It  is  no  princess  or 
earthly  king's  daughter  to  whom  Solomon  thus 
condescends.     It  is  one  unused  to  rich  gifts^ 

Is  the  rustic  maiden  won  by  the  promises  of 
jewelry  and  finery,  such  as  young  women  are 
usually  anxious  to  own  .-'  Such  presents  might 
easily  influence  her  favorably.  Is  she  inclined 
to  yield  .-* 

Not  yet.  The  "  ointment  poured  forth,"  as 
the  court  ladies  named  the  king,  is  not  yet  her 
accepted  perfume.   The  savor  sweet  to  her  soul 


THE  LILY  AMONG    THORNS.  1 65 

is  wafted  from  pastures,  not  from  divans.  She 
intimates  that  while  the  king  sat  at  his  table,  or 
rested  on  his  couch,  that  is,  when  he  was  ab- 
sent, she  was  most  happy.  As  it  is,  she  thinks 
of  her  beloved,  who  is  to  her  as  precious  nard. 
Maidens  of  to-day,  as  in  all  the  ages  since 
love  was  born  in  Eden,  call  their  absent  lovers 
sweet  pet  names,  using  the  terms  of  endear- 
ment borrowed  from  things  most  familiar  and 
also  most  precious.  The  Shulamite's  names  for 
her  shepherd-lover  are,  "my  nard,"  my  "bag 
of  myrrh,"  my  "bunch  of  cypress  flowers." 
Hear  her  : 

"  Even  while  the  king  sat  at  his  table,  my  spike- 
nard yielded  its  sweet  odor.  A  vial  of  myrrh  rest- 
ing in  my  bosom  is  my  beloved  to  me.  As  a  cluster 
of  cypress-blossoms  from  the  gardens  of  En-gedi  is 
my  beloved  to  me." 

Note  here  how  differently  the  words  inverse 
thirteenth  sound  as  we  re-read  them  naturally. 
In  the  proper  rendering  of  the  Hebrew,  the 
unrevised  and  offensive  phrase  "'  he  shall  lie  all 
night,"  etc.,  disappears,  and  with  it  the  last 
suggestion  of  anything  inconsistent  with  pro- 
priety. Grammar  and  parallelism  show  that 
the  reference  of  place  is  to  the  myrrh  and  not 
to  the  lover.  The  young  girl  is  simply  com- 
paring her  betrothed,  her  spikenard,  myrrh, 
and  cypress  flower,   to  what  is  sentimentally 


1 66  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

equal  to  our  buttonhole,  belt,  or  corsage  bou- 
quet, which  she  wears  for  ornament,  instead  of 
the  jewelry  promised  by  Solomon,  The  maid- 
ens of  Israel,  as  we  learn  from  the  Hebrew 
of  Isaiah,  called  the  pretty  vials  of  perfume, 
made  of  snow-white  onyx  or  alabaster,  which 
they  wore  suspended  round  their  necks  be- 
tween their  heart  and  their  garments,  "soul- 
dwellings,"  or  "  the  houses  of  the  soul,"  the 
perfume  inclosed  being  the  soul  of  their  fa- 
vorite friend  or  lover.  While  virgin  modesty 
bows  her  head  under  the  royal  flatteries,  the 
sweet  odor  on  her  own  bosom  ascends  grate- 
fully to  the  sense  of  smell,  reminding  her  of 
him  whom  she  always  calls  "  the  beloved,"  now 
far  away. 

Thus,  under  a  critical  study  of  this  lovely 
Bible  picture  of  true  love,  all  suspicion  of  any- 
thing that  could  shock  propriety  vanishes. 
The  purest-minded  virgin  may  safely  read  the 
Song  of  Songs,  in  which  is  no  trace  of  immoral 
thought.  "  Marked  with  Oriental  abandon,  yet 
unlike  all  other  pastorals,  Latin,  Greek,  or 
Eastern,  it  has  not  the  vestige  of  a  putrid 
stain."  No  expurgations,  omissions,  or  apology 
are  needed  for  this  book.  It  stands  forth  amid 
erotic  literature  as  chaste  as  unsunned  snow, 
a  miracle  of  purest  thought  and  diction  as 
compared  with  the  love  poems  of  Asia. 


THE  LILY  AMONG    THORNS.  16/ 

The  conversation  continues,  Solomon  talk- 
ing to  this  new  addition  to  the  list  of  "virgins 
without  number  "  in  his  train  ;  but  though  her 
words  seem  directed  to  the  king,  her  heart  is 
with  her  "beloved,"  and  her  thoughts  are 
upon  the  life  amid  nature  which  she  so  loves. 
Not  only  is  her  speech  in  the  Galilean  rustic 
dialect,  while  the  king's  is  in  the  polished  lan- 
guage of  Judea,  but  while  her  talk  is  of  things 
home-made  and  out-doors,  his  is  of  works  of 
art  and  of  skilled  workmen. 

Solomon.  Lo,  thou  art  lovely,  my  dear.  Lo, 
thine  eyes  are  as  doves. 

Shulamite.  Lo,  thou  art  lovely,  my  beloved,  yea, 
pleasant ;  our  arbor  is  green. 

Solomon.  The  roof-beams  of  our  house  are  of 
cedar,  the  wainscoting  of  cypress. 

Shulamite.  I  am  only  a  wild  flower  of  the  plain, 
a  lily  of  the  valley. 

Thus  she  refuses  to  be  identified  with  the 
hot-house  blooms,  delicate  and  frail,  that  thrive 
in  courts,  love  the  warm  breath  of  flattery,  and 
hang  on  princes'  favors. 

The  place  called  Sharon,  usually  written  as 
a  proper  name,  is  throughout  the  Bible  the 
sharon,  or  the  great  plain  or  broad  field  which 
contains  the  largest  space  of  level  land  in  t*al- 
estine.  Instead  of  the  "rose," — our  queen 
of  flowers,  brought  long  after  Solomon's  time 


1 68  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

from  Persia,  —  a  simple  wild  flower  is  what  the 
Shulamite  calls  herself.  She  is  only  a  daisy 
of  the  meadow,  only  the  lily  that  modestly 
hides  in  the  glen.  It  was  probably  this  idea 
and  her  own  words,  very  probably  this  very 
passage,  which  Jesus  had  in  mind,  when  in  the 
region  of  her  home  he  said,  "  Consider  the 
lilies  of  the  field."  As  he  commends  simple 
purity  rather  than  gaudy  display,  so  here  the 
poet  sets  in  antithesis  the  stainless  girl  and 
the  luxurious  and  sin-dyed  king. 

The  quick  and  happy  repartee  now  put  by 
the  poet  in  the  mouth  of  her  admirer  shows 
the  character  as  well  as  the  beauty  of  the 
heroine.  She  is  of  a  different  temper  from  the 
other  women  who  throng  the  royal  harem,  — 
the  worshipers  of  Astarte,  the  odalisques, 
the  dancing-girls,  the  heathen  beauties,  and 
the  frivolous  playthings,  —  women  in  form,  but 
silly  children  in  nature.  Here  is  one  pure, 
strong,  real,  sincere  woman,  true  even  amid 
unwonted  allurements  to  vows  made  and  faith 
plighted. 

"  As  a  lily  among  thorns,  so  is  my  love 
among  the  daughters,"  answers  Solomon. 

A  holy  character  flourishing  amid  uncon- 
genial circumstances,  the  seed  of  the  kingdom 
unchoked  of  the  brambles,  pure  religion  main- 
tained amid  persecution,  has  in  all  the  ages  of 


THE  LILY  AMONG   THORNS.  1 69 

the  Christian  Church  been  a  favorite  symbol. 
"The  Church  under  the  Cross  "  in  the  Nether- 
lands, and  of  the  Waldenses,  early  chose  this 
as  their  emblem.  The  thorns  of  oppression, 
of  flattery,  of  false  religion,  could  no  more  con- 
taminate or  kill  the  pure  faith  of  the  churches 
of  Holland  or  Italy,  than  could  uncongenial 
influences  wither  this  flower  of  Israel. 

The  maiden  in  return  sings  the  praises  of 
her  "  beloved,"  comparing  him  to  the  sweet- 
breathed  apple-tree,  which  in  the  springtime  is 
all  glorious  with  beauty,  and  in  autumn  all 
golden  with  fruit.  In  the  natural  poetry  of 
the  Hebrews,  the  apple-tree  takes  its  name 
from  a  word  meaning  to  breathe,  —  the  fra- 
grant breath  of  the  tree,  the  perfume  of  the 
fruit  being  especially  esteemed.  It  is  triply 
valuable  for  shade,  blossom,  and  refreshment, 

"  As  the  apple-tree  among  the  wild  trees  of  the 
wood,  so  is  my  beloved  among  the  sons.  Delight- 
edly I  sit  under  his  shade,  and  his  fruit  is  delicious 
to  my  taste.  O  that  he  would  bring  me  into  the 
vineyard,  his  very  shadow  over  me  being  love." 

In  memory  of  past  hours  of  joy,  and  in  hope 
of  future  meeting,  the  love-lorn  girl  cries  out 
for  the  fruits  of  the  grape-vine  and  of  the  apple- 
tree,  which,  in  figurative  language,  stand  for 
the  joys  of  the  communion  of  innocent  love, 


I/O  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

the  kiss  and  caress,  enjoyed  in  vineyard  and 
orchard. 

"  O  comfort  me  with  (such)  raisin-cakes.  Re- 
fresh me  with  (such)  apples,  for  I  am  faint  with 
love." 

Thus,  in  heart-sickness  of  pining  and  loneli- 
ness, the  heroine  gives  \vay  to  her  feelings  in 
desiring  to  be  with  her  lover  : 

"  Let  his  left  hand  be  under  my  head,  and  his 
right  arm  support  me." 

How  true  the  poet  here  is  to  the  actual  facts 
of  the  young  girl's  life.  These  being  the 
words  of  a  maiden  absolutely  without  guile, 
they  can  bear  but  one  meaning  of  innocent 
longing  for  the  companionship  of  one  beloved. 
Yet  if  heard  or  overheard  by  less  guileless 
ears,  whether  inmate  of  harem,  or  auditor  of 
the  cantata,  whether  seen  by  spectator  in 
Palestine  or  reader  of  the  English  Bible,  other 
meanings  more  or  less  turbid  might  be  dis- 
cerned. To  the  pure  all  things  are  pure,  and 
if  there  be  one  thing  pure  under  the  blue  sky 
it  is  a  young  virgin  ;  but  the  Bible  and  this 
poem  are  read  by  others  besides  the  daugh- 
ters reared  in  Hebrew  and  Christian  homes. 

Did  the  lip  of  proud  princess  curl,  or  the 
eye  of  odalisque  in  Solomon's  zenana  shoot 
out  the  darts  of  suspicion  at  the  Shulamite  } 


THE  LILY  AMONG    THORNS.  171 

Was  it  woman's  unbelief  of  woman,  the  mock- 
ing, incredulous  sneer  on  lij^  or  eye,  that  drew 
out  the  stern  adjuration  of  the  Hebrew 
maiden  ?  Or  is  it  the  pasan  of  triumphant 
fidelity  which  fills  the  exultant  and  defiant 
strain  that  thrice  echoes  through  this  drama  ? 
Compared  with  the  gentleness  of  her  other 
speeches,  this  oath  seems  like  a  peal  of 
thunder. 

"  I  adjure  you,  O  ye  daughters  of  Jerusalem,  by 
the  gazelles  and  by  the  hinds  of  the  fields  that  ye 
rouse  not  my  love  till  it  please." 

This  is  no  soothing  ditty  which  the  poet 
makes  issue  from  her  mouth.  The  rustic 
maid  swears  by  the  creatures  most  free  and 
least  influenced  by  artificial  life  that  her  affec- 
tions are  not  to  be  either  incited  or  excited 
except  by  her  own  inclination.  "Till  it 
please,"  is  the  word  ;  for  love  must  be  born  of 
God,  not  roused  by  gifts  or  bribe.  In  the  same 
word  with  which  Jehovah  names  his  people 
when  purified  and  restored,  —  Hephzibah,  my 
delight  is  in  her,  —  we  find  this  same  strong 
word  JiepJisi,  meaning  delight,  inclination  ap- 
plied to  love.  This  fire  of  God  is  not  to  be 
wantonly  excited,  but  is  to  delight  in  its  ob- 
ject. This  may  not  be  good  or  palatable  doc- 
trine   to    those    managers    of    the    marriage 


172  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

market  who  consider  all  poor,  or  rising  but 
impecunious,  young  men  as  "detrimentals." 
Too  many  women  and  match-makers  have 
*'  the  world  set  in  their  heart,"  and  parents, 
who  have  survived  and  forgotten  all  sentiment, 
regard  anything  like  real  love  between  young- 
people  not  on  the  same  social  and  financial 
level  as  hurtful  nonsense. 

We  can  easily  imagine  the  advice  given  to 
the  poor  maiden  of  Shunem  about  choosing 
between  "  a  lion  and  a  mouse,"  in  the  form  of 
Israel's  king  and  one  of  Galilee's  ten  thousand 
shepherds.  It  is  quite  certain  that  the  natural 
interpretation  of  the  Song  of  Songs  will  never 
be  popular  with  those  who  have  come  to  years 
or  condition  of  heart  when  sentiment  is  so 
often  dead,  and  who  believe  in  marriages  of 
property  and  convenience  rather  than  of  true 
affection.  Yet  the  lesson  of  this  part  of  God's 
Word  comes  with  equal  force  to  the  young  man 
who  is  seeking  to  win  a  maiden's  heart.  It  is 
best  not  to  awaken  love  till  it  please.  The 
would-be  husband  risks  an  awful  peril  in  rous- 
ing a  young  girl  to  too  hasty  decision.  How 
many  men  wish  to  marry  in  a  hurry !  Delay- 
ing for  years  on  account  of  business'  or  ambi- 
tion's sake  the  choice  of  a  partner  and  the 
gentle  art  of  winning  a  helpmeet,  many  a  fool- 
ish man  makes  himself  all  ready,  after  months 


THE  LILY  AMONG    THORNS.  1 73 

it  may  be  of  self-preparation,  and  then  expects 
a  maiden  to  give  answer  with  promptness, 
even  though  his  proposal  may  have  come  at 
her  Hke  a  battering-ram.  Is  it  not  best  not 
to  hurry  a  woman  until  she  is  sure  of  herself  ? 
Is  it  not  a  wrong  to  rob  her  of  the  season  of 
romance,  the  time  for  courtship  ?  Does  not 
God  in  nature  teach  us  the  lesson  of  bud  and 
blossom  before  ripe  fruit,  of  blade  and  ear 
before  the  ripe  corn  in  the  ear  ?  Even  to  the 
coquette,  this  adjuration  may  give  food  for 
solemn  thought.  The  awful  record  of  unhappy 
marriages  and  divorces  would  be  marvelously 
shortened,  if  these  words  were  deeply  pon- 
dered by  young  and  old. 


ACT  II.  SCENE  I. 
THE  DOVE  IN  THE  CLEFT  OF  THE  ROCKS. 

Chapter  II.  8-17. 

In  Act  II.  the  heroine's  environment  changes 
from  the  surroundin^^s  of  royalty  to  the  vine- 
clad  cottage  among  her  native  hills.  Here  are 
pictured  gardens  and  fig-trees,  hill-pastures 
and  mountains,  and  the  characteristic  vicinage 
of  a  north  Palestinian  home.  The  rainy  sea- 
son of  winter  is  over,  and  all  nature  wears  the 
festal  garments  of  springtime.  We  listen  now 
to  the  narrative,  by  the  Shulamite  to  the  court 
ladies,  of  a  sweet  experience  of  her  life  before 
she  was  brought  to  the  royal  quarters.  As 
usual,  her  talk  is  in  the  Galilean  dialect. 

She  hears  a  voice  beloved  and  a  footstep 
familiar. 

"  Hark  !  my  beloved  !  Ha  !  here  he  comes,  leap- 
ing over  the  mountains,  bounding  over  the  hills. 
Mv  love  is  like  a  fjazelle  or  a  fawn.  There  !  he 
Stands  beliind  our  garden  wall,  his  eyes  twinkle 
through  the  window,  his  face  blooms  at  the  lattice." 

As  a  vine  of  honeysuckle  or  morning  glory 


DOVE  IN  THE    CLEFT  OF   THE  ROCKS.     1 75 

winding  its  perfumed  way  over  the  trellis  will 
come  in  through  the  meshes  to  open  bright 
petals  on  the  inner  side,  so  the  maid  at  home 
sees  her  lover's  face  blooming  through  the 
lattice,  flushed  with  the  joy  of  seeing  her 
whose  face  is  on  his  heart  ever.  Hear  his 
poetic  invitation,  his  serenade  song,  in  genuine 
lover's  language,  for  as  she  tells  this  reminis- 
cence of  her  life  to  the  court  ladies  she  con- 
tinues : 

"  Called  my  beloved  and  sang  to  me  : 
" '  Up,  my  love,  my  fair  one,  and  come  forth  ;  for 
see,  the  winter  is  gone,  the  rain  is  over,  is  past^ 
the  flowers  appear  in  the  fields,  the  time  for  sing- 
ing (while  we  prune  the  vines)  has  come,  and  the 
voice  of  the  turtle-dove  is  heard  in  our  land.  The 
fig-tree  sends  forth  the  aroma  of  its  figs,  and  the 
tender  buds  of  the  grape-vine  yield  fragrance.  Up, 
my  love,  my  beauty,  and  come  away.'  " 

So  invites  the  young  mountaineer,  who  is 
here  and  always  in  the  poem  the  "  beloved," 
in  words  whose  images  are  very  different  from 
those  that  saluted  the  maiden's  ear  and  imag- 
ination when  Solomon  flattered  her  in  the 
palace.  The  royal  suitor's  compliments  were 
borrowed  from  horses  and  chariots,  harness, 
jewels,  ceiling-beams,  and  dados,  —  all  the  ar- 
tificial luxury  of  gorgeous  pavilions  or  city 
houses.     The  homespun   lover  invites  to  out- 


176  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

door  delights,  to  simple  and  innocent  enjoy- 
ment of  nature.  Not  horses,  but  birds  ;  not 
imported  cosmetics  and  apothecary's  perfum- 
ery, but  nature's  fragrance  in  vine  and  blos- 
som ;  not  the  harp  and  zither,  but  the  sweet 
note  of  the  turtle-dove,  shall  she  have  and 
hear.  Nothing  can  be  in  greater  contrast 
than  the  love-sonnets  of  the  royal  suitor  and 
the  glowing  strains  of  the  plebeian  lover,  in 
this  exquisite  cantata.  The  formal  advances  of 
the  one  and  the  spontaneous  grace  of  the  other 
are  apparent. 

How  does  the  maiden  answer  her  Galilean 
shepherd  lover  ? 

Perhaps  she  is  coy.     She  lingers. 

Just  here  let  us  pause  to  analyze  the  feelings 
in  her  bosom  as  she  stands  on  the  threshold 
of  her  home,  eager,  yet  self-restrained,  while 
the  war  of  the  roses  make  a  battlefield  of  her 
cheeks,  as  red  and  white  struggle  for  victory. 

Is  it  modesty,  bashfulness,  diffidence,  or 
shyness  that  puts  feet  and  heart  at  odds,  that 
makes  her  waver  between  "  go  "  and  "stay  "  } 
Let  us  analyze  these  four  words.  Modesty  is 
a  full,  first-class  virtue,  and  arises  from  a  low 
estimate  of  ourselves,  and  often  is  but  a  candle 
to  show  one's  real  merit.  Bashfulness  is  an 
agitation  of  the  spirits  in  coming  into  the  pres- 
ence of  others.     Diffidence  springs  from  too 


DOVE  IN   THE   CLEFT  OF  THE  ROCKS.     1 77 

much  distrust  of  self.  Shyness  comes  from 
excessive  self-consciousness,  and  a  painful  im- 
pression that  every  one  is  really  looking  at  us. 
It  is  really  a  kind  of  vanity. 

So  say  the  oracles  of  lexicography. 

Now,  modesty  in  deportment  is  becoming 
to  all,  maid  or  married,  child  or  adult,  man  or 
woman  ;  but  bashfulness  usually  results  in 
blunders  ;  diffidence  makes  a  man  a  burden  to 
himself,  especially  in  society ;  while  shyness 
creates  a  reserve  which  is  often  mistaken  for 
haughtiness,  so  that  persons  least  inclined 
to  severity  are  not  infrequently  taxed  with 
pride  and  an  unsociable  and  even  unfriendly 
spirit. 

Shall  not  we,  like  this  fair  Hebrew,  ever 
cultivate  modesty  ;  leave  bashfulness  for  nerv- 
ous people  and  ill-bred  children  ;  educate  our- 
selves out  of  diffidence  ;  and  give  over  shyness 
to  vain  and  light-headed  folks,  and  especially 
to  hermits  and  narrow  individuals  who  think 
all  the  world  is  gazing  at  them  and  is  inter- 
ested in  their  least  concerns  .'' 

Modesty  is  the  jewel  of  the  Shulamite 
maiden.  She  waits  at  her  lover's  call.  Her 
coyness  induces  him  to  begin  again  his  invita- 
tion. He  calls  her  by  no  pet  name  of  city 
bauble,  of  hot-house  flower,  or  of  India  spice. 
She  is  a  dove,  not  of  the  ordinary  tamed  sort 


178  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

in  dove-cote  or  pigeon-tower,  but  one  hiding 
modestly  away. 

"  O  my  dove,  in  the  clefts  of  the  rocks,  in  the 
recesses  of  the  cliffs,  let  me  see  thy  form,  let  me 
hear  thy  voice,  for  sweet  is  thy  voice  and  lovely  is 
thy  figure." 

Does  she  yield  sweetly,  and  do  the  lovers 
then  hand  in  hand  saunter  forth  for  holiday 
and  delight  .'*  Or  do  the  step-brothers  here 
interrupt  and  postpone  the  meeting,  and  send 
her  to  her  work  with  rough  words .''  Have 
they  given  her  orders  to  catch  the  little  foxes 
and  exterminate  the  pests  of  the  vineyard } 
Is  this  the  explanation  of  her  mother's  sons' 
being  angry  with  her  .''  If  so,  may  we  not  sup- 
pose that  she  turns  their  commands  into  a  song, 
and  goes  forth  singing  the  words  with  glee  .■' 
Possibly  we  have  here,  however,  the  song  of 
the  rustic  lover  himself,  and  this  supposition 
has  support  in  the  idea  that  the  word  "  spake  " 
{ana/i)  of  verse  tenth  means  also  to  sing.  It 
is  more  than  probable  that,  whatever  view  we 
take,  we  have  here  a  snatch  of  the  popular 
balladry,  such  as  might  often  have  been  heard 
on  the  hills  of  Issachar  twenty-five  centuries 
ago. 

"  Catch  us  the  foxes, 
The  little  foxes,  spoiling  the  vineyards, 
For  our  vineyards  are  in  bloom." 


DOVE   IN   THE   CLEFT  OF   THE   ROCKS.     179 

So,  the  Israelitish  lads  and  lassies  lightened 
their  toil.  It  is  springtime,  and  the  long- 
nosed  cubs  are  coming  out  of  their  holes.  At 
this  season  they  are  especially  apt  to  injure 
the  vineyards  by  undermining  the  walls,  cut- 
ting the  roots  of  the  vines,  and  gnawing  the 
stems  and  young  shoots.  The  little  foxes  are 
even  more  dangerous  than  the  old  ones.  A 
vine-dresser  would  gladly  let  the  young  brush- 
tails  have  a  few  bunches  of  grapes  when  ripe, 
but  he  objects  seriously  to  having  his  roots 
and  sprouts  nibbled  to  pieces.  All  foxes  are 
fond  of  the  luscious  clusters,  as  we  well  know, 
and  Reynard  has  furnished  us  with  the  well- 
known  proverb  of  "sour  grapes," — evidently 
known  even  in  Solomon's  time,  —  which  is  the 
symbol  of  impotent  jealousy,  or  unattainable 
desire  curdled  even  to  envy.  Big  foxes  allow 
at  least  the  grapes  to  grow,  be  they  sweet  or 
sour,  but  little  foxes  spoil  the  growth  of  either. 
For  other  beasts  there  may  be  some  law  and 
mercy,  but  of  the  vineyard-destroyers,  be  they 
Hebrew  j-////rt/( I  Sam.  xiii.  17),  fox,  or  jackal,  the 
law  then  as  now  is  told  us  by  Walter  Scott : 

"  Who  ever  recked  where,  how  or  when 
The  prowling  fox  was  trapped  or  slain  ?  " 

Whether  we  are  to  understand  the  poet  as 
intimating  that  the  severe  and  magisterial 
step-brothers    interrupted    and    separated    the 


l80  STUDIES  AND    COMMENTS. 

lovers  by  their  command  to  their  younger  sis- 
ter to  be  about  her  work  of  guarding  the  vine- 
yard against  the  foxes,  or  not,  it  makes  little 
difference  in  her  feelings  to  her  beloved  except 
to  intensify  them.  Love  makes  second  spring- 
time in  her  heart.  She  assures  the  daughters 
of  Jerusalem  of  her  unswerving  affection  to 
the  absent  one. 

"  My  beloved  is  mine  and  I  am  his,  who  feedeth 
his  flock  among  the  lilies." 

In  their  life  in  the  home  highlands,  the  one 
toils  in  her  vineyard,  the  other  feeds  his  sheep 
in  the  meadows  ;  but  once  the  allotted  work 
done,  then  comes  the  cool  of  the  day,  and  this 
is  the  time  for  the  lovers'  meeting,  from  twi- 
light until  the  hour  of  separation.  The  pros- 
pect of  this  reunion  cheers  and  lightens  the 
labors  of  both  during  the  heat  and  burden  un- 
til the  day  cools,  that  is,  until  evening  ap- 
proaches, the  sunset  breeze  blows,  and  the 
moving  shadows  have  lengthened  and  fled 
along  the  ground  until  in  dusk  they  disappear. 
Then,  in  the  poetry  of  the  Hebrew  idiom,  "the 
day  breathes  itself  away." 

"  When  the  day  cools,  and  the  shadows  flee  away, 
return,  haste,  O  my  beloved,  and  be  thou  like  a 
gazelle  over  the  separating  mountains." 

The    sentences    of  this  pretty    refrain,    full 


DOVE  IN  THE   CLEFT  OF   THE  ROCKS.     l8l 

of  the  poetry  of  the  sunset  breeze,  the  last 
breath  of  day,  the  racing  shadows,  the  leaping 
hind,  and  the  old  mountains  wrinkled  with 
gorge  and  ravine,  vibrate  true  poetry.  More 
than  once  it  recurs  in  the  poem,  and  if  this 
cantata  were  ever  sung  in  the  open  air  we  can 
easily  imagine  the  effect  of  this  sweet  song  of 
love's  invitation. 

It  is  noticeable  how  the  Shulamite  describes 
the  man  of  her  choice  :  never  as  a  king,  or 
courtier,  or  a  dweller  in  cities,  but  always  as  a 
fleet-footed  mountaineer,  or  shepherd  who  pas- 
tures his  flock  amid  the  flowery  meadows,  or 
in  the  dales  where  the  lilies  bloom.  The  sen- 
tence descriptive  of  his  occupation  is  added 
with  emphasis.  "  My  beloved  to  me  and  I  to 
him, — he  who  feedeth  [his  flock]  among  the 
lilies,"  is  the  picture  which,  briefly  and  vividly, 
she  draws  of  her  beloved,  who  is  not  Solomon. 


ACT   II.     SCENE   II. 
IN    DREAM-LAND. 

Chapter    III.   1-5. 

The  next  scene  in  the  cantata,  beginning 
chapter  iii.,  takes  us  back  to  the  city.  It  is  a 
dream,  and  here,  as  always  in  the  Bible,  the 
description  of  the  dream-scenery,  dissolving 
views,  and  persons  is  felicitously  true  to  life. 
We  may  not  always  dream  of  what  we  think 
most  about,  but  our  sleep-closed  eyes  will  see 
only  what  is  upon  the  landscape  of  our  experi- 
ence. 

Men  whose  talk  is  of  oxen  will  dream  of 
oxen,  shepherds  have  visions  of  their  flocks, 
engineers  of  cars  and  railways,  tennis  players 
of  tennis,  students  of  books  and  recitations  ; 
while  the  clergymen  have  their  one  typical 
dream,  with  variations,  of  being  in  church  with 
something  lacking  or  out  of  order,  of  facing  an 
audience  without  due  preparation,  of  failing  to 
find  hymn,  text,  or  robe,  or  to  do  properly  what 
in  actual  life  they  do  with  propriety  a  hundred 
times  a  year.     The  country  girl  in  her  sleep 


IN  DREAM-LAND.  1 83 

will  imagine  herself  lost  in  the  streets  of  a 
great  city.  Many  things  absurd  and  fantastic 
will  start  before  our  sleeping  consciousness, 
but  all  the  elements  will  come  out  of  our  ex- 
perience—  what  we  feel  or  know,  think  or  read 
about.  We  dream  only  about  that  which  has 
met  our  waking  eye  or  thoughts,  although  we 
cannot  always  trace  the  links  of  connection. 
The  combinations  of  the  kaleidoscope  of  dreams 
are  strange,  but  the  parts  are  familiar.  The 
images  on  the  brain  are  rearranged  into  new 
forms  without  judgment  or  the  regulating  fac- 
ulty. Whereas  the  root-sense  of  our  English 
word  "  dream  "  is  that  of  sound  or  music,  and 
the  Greek  idea  that  of  noise  or  tumult,  the  He- 
brew word  photographs  the  thought  of  a  man 
tied  or  bound,  his  senses  congealed  or  closed, 
so  that  surprise  or  wonder  cannot  enter  to  take 
part  with  the  other  faculties  of  the  mind. 

Chapter  iii.  begins  a  dream  which  the  Shu- 
lamite  thus  narrates : 

"  Lying  upon  my  bed  in  the  darkness  of  night,  I 
was  looking  for  him  whom  my  soul  loveth :  I 
sought  him,  but  I  found  him  not.     I  said  to  myself : 

"  '  I  shall  arise  now,  and  go  about  the  city  in  tlie 
streets  and  squares.  I  shall  seek  him  whom  my 
soul  loveth.' 

"I  sought  him  but  I  found  him  not. 

"  Then  the  night  watchmen  who  patrol  the  city 


1 84  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

met  me.  I  asked  them,  '  Him  whom  my  soul  lov- 
eth,  have  you  seen  him  ? '  but  I  had  hardly  more 
than  passed  by  them  when  I  found  him  whom  my 
soul  loveth.  I  grasped  him  and  would  not  let  him 
go  until  I  had  brought  him  into  my  mother's  house, 
yes,  even  into  my  mother's  room  in  presence  of  the 
author  of  my  being." 

Note  here  one  of  the  characteristics  of  a 
dream.  The  dreamer's  home,  remember,  is  in 
northern  Palestine,  at  Shunem  in  Galilee. 
Jerusalem,  with  its  avenues  and  plazas,  about 
which  the  court  ladies  have  told  her,  and  about 
which  her  fancy  has  been  busy,  lies  in  the  far 
South.  She  dreams  that  she  is  seeking  her 
lover,  and  imagines  herself  doing  an  impossible 
thing  —  walking  about  "  the  city,"  Jerusalem, 
at  night,  when  the  streets  are  full  of  revelers, 
requiring  police  to  patrol  the  thoroughfares  to 
look  out  for  fire,  thieves,  drunkards,  and  the 
disorderly  characters  so  numerously  mentioned 
in  the  book  of  Proverbs. 

Innocently  she  supposes  every  one  is  ac- 
quainted with  her  lover  and  knows  him,  though 
he  most  probably  has  never  been  heard  of  be- 
yond his  native  pastures. 

How  true  is  this  to  human  nature,  to  peo- 
ple absorbed  in  one  idea,  especially  to  simple 
folk  without  much  knowledge  of  the  world. 
Many  young  folks  of  the  present  day  are  apt 


JN  DREAM-LAND.  1 85 

to  suppose  the  whole  world  is  moved  at  the  re- 
port of  their  engagement,  or  marriage,  or  busi- 
ness concerns.  The  centre  of  the  universe,  to 
most  people,  is  the  pronoun  I.  The  little  child 
with  a  new  pair  of  shoes,  who  walks  into 
church  thinking  that  every  man,  woman,  and 
child  from  pulpit  to  front  door  is  gazing  on 
that  particular  purchase,  is  a  type  of  the  self- 
conscious  and  self-important  lad  or  lassie 
wrapped  up  in  one  idea. 

The  Shulamite  evidently  believed  her  lover 
was  a  public  man  of  vast  importance.  She 
knew  him  well,  therefore  every  one  else  surely 
must,  for  she  asks  the  watchmen,  without  men- 
tioning name,  date,  or  place,  "  Have  you  seen 
him,  my  lover,  the  one  I  love  .-' " 

But  the  watchmen  most  probably  gave  her 
a  policeman's  stare  instead  of  a  drawing-room 
answer. 

Then  suddenly  she  sees  him  whom  she  loves 
and  grasps  him  by  the  hand,  leading  him  —  by 
one  of  those  curious  possibilities  of  dreams,  by 
which  space  and  distance  are  annihilated  — 
out  of  the  thoroughfare  of  the  capital  to  her 
mother's  house,  or  from  Jerusalem  to  Shunem 
—  a  hundred  miles  in  a  second 

This  act  of  taking  her  lover  into  her  mother's 
presence  to  show  to  her  parent  her  conquest, 
and  to  introduce  him  to  her  family,  shows  the 


1 86  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

childlike,  artless,  and  dutiful  disposition  of  the 
girl.  It  is  a  proof  of  the  absolute  guilelessness 
of  maidenhood. 

In  this  respect,  even  in  her  dream,  the  Shu- 
lamite  is  an  example  to  modern  youths  and 
maidens.  It  would  certainly  save  many  broken 
hearts  and  ruined  lives  if  daughters  now  would 
make  confidants  of  their  mothers,  and  in  pres- 
ence of  those  who  love  them  best  enjoy  the 
innocent  pleasures  that  spring  from  the  asso- 
ciation with  young  men.  How  many  foolish 
people  come  to  the  parson's  to  get  married, 
and,  after  the  ceremony  is  over,  plead  that  it 
be  kept  quiet, —  "Don't  advertise  it,  for  the 
world  !  "  Better  the  innocence  of  the  Shula- 
mite  than  the  smart  secrecy  of  the  clandestine 
marriage. 

Finally,  whether  waking  or  sleeping,  whether 
at  rustic  labor  at  home,  or  enjoying  the  luxury 
of  king's  palaces,  whether  in  the  hamlet  of 
Shunem,  in  the  royal  tent  on  its  way  to  the 
capital,  or  in  the  city  of  Jerusalem,  but  espe- 
cially exultant  in  the  presence,  real,  remem- 
bered, or  expected,  of  her  true  and  accepted 
lover,  the  heroine  of  the  poem  concludes  this, 
as  she  does  every  experience,  with  the  solemn 
adjuration  which  thrice  recurs.  It  is  in  fresh 
memory  of  her  mother's  home  with  her  lover 
beside  her  that  she  now  cries  out  : 


IN  DREAM-LAND.  1 8/ 

"  I  adjure  you,  O  ye  daughters  of  Jerusalem,  by 
the  roes,  and  by  the  hinds  of  the  field,  that  ye  stir 
not  up  nor  excite  love  till  it  please." 

Note  here  that  some  of  the  expressions  in 
Canticles,  as  we  have  rendered  them,  differ  in 
sense  from  those  in  the  English  version  of 
1611  ;  and,  as  we  give  them,  they  are  less  ob- 
jectionable to  the  moral  sense  of  the  Christian, 
than  in  the  old  unrevised  version  of  the  Eng- 
lish Bible.  Now  it  is  true  that  different  trans- 
lators render  certain  passages  differently,  and 
the  reason  is  plain.  The  expression  in  English 
will  be  according  to  the  theory  of  the  poem 
and  the  thought  of  the  translator  or  reader. 
Bring  to  Canticles  a  frivolous  or  prurient  mind, 
and  one  can  find  much  that  gratifies  a  depraved 
taste.  Read  it  with  a  chaste,  nay  even  with  a 
fairly  unbiased  mind,  and  there  is  nothing  im- 
pure or  improperly  suggestive. 

King  James's  translators  acted  on  the  theory 
that  Solomon  wrote  the  poem  and  refers  to 
the  Shulamite  as  his  bride  ;  hence  the  sen- 
tences not  in  harmony  with  good  taste,  though 
they  may  have  suited  the  taste  of  the  age  in 
the  England  of  three  centuries  ago.  The 
translators  seem  to  have  been  more  familiar 
with  the  Vulgate  and  Scptuagint  than  with 
the  original  text,  besides  needlessly  marring 
many  tender  Hebrew   passages,  especially  in 


1 88  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

Isaiah,  with  a  truly  Saxon  coarseness.  Renan, 
who  sees  in  Christ  only  a  Galilean  peasant,  in 
Ecclesiastes  a  dyspeptic  cynic,  and  in  all  the 
Old  Testament  nothing  divine,  will  of  course 
discover  in  Le  Cantique  only  the  coarse  flirta- 
tions of  a  dancing-girl  and  dialogues  fitted  for 
beer  saloons.  But  honest-minded  scholars,  and 
especially  those  who  reject  the  allegorical  the- 
ory, find  what  we  believe,  that  there  is  nothing 
objectionable  or  offensive  to  refined  taste  in 
the  entire  language  of  the  cantata,  except  pos- 
sibly a  passage  in  chapter  vii.  which  the  poet 
rightly  puts  into  the  mouth  of  the  voluptuary 
Solomon.  According  to  the  natural  theory  of 
the  poem,  there  is  no  need  for  improper  lan- 
guage or  words  of  double  meaning.  In  sen- 
tences fitting,  glowing,  passionate,  poetic  yet 
pure,  modest  yet  strong ;  in  noble  suggestion 
of  naive  simplicity,  with  hearty  delight  in  na- 
ture, and  with  artless  filial  affection,  the  Gali- 
lean maiden  speaks,  her  chastity  of  thought 
ever  prevailing  over  the  ardor  of  her  images. 

We  pity  those  whose  eyes  cannot  enjoy  the 
study  of  an  undraped  statue  or  a  picture  in 
which  Art  touches  chastely  her  noblest  sub- 
jects ;  and  if  we  pity  those  whose  culture  is  so 
lacking,  in  whom  is  absent  the  sense  of  appre- 
ciation of  the  divine  masterpieces  of  beauty  in 
the  human  body,  how  much  more  should  we 


IN  DREAM-LAND.  l8g 

pity  those  who  cannot  enjoy  with  holy  pleas- 
ure the  study  of  the  Song  of  Songs. 

The  inspired  poet  does  not  here  sing  of  the 
spiritual  love  of  Christ  and  the  Church,  for  the 
simple  reason  that  in  his  view  the  pure  love  of 
man  and  woman  in  itself  is  divine,  even  kin- 
dled by  Jehovah  himself. 


ACT  III.  SCENE  I. 
THE  ROYAL  PROCESSION. 

Chapter  III.   6-11. 

Into  the  Jerusalem  of  Jehovah's  temple,  pal- 
aces of  marble  ornamented  with  ivory,  grand 
buildings  in  new  and  strange  designs  of  archi- 
tecture which  compel  contrast  with  the  wooden 
dwellings  of  David's  time,  the  royal  procession 
now  enters  amid  the  gleaming  of  steel  and  the 
waving  of  banners.  The  tents  of  the  king's 
household,  which  had  been  pitched  in  the  re- 
gion of  the  Shulamite's  home,  have  been  folded 
up,  and  the  journey  to  the  capital  taken  down 
the  Jordan  valley  to  the  low  lands  of  Jericho, 
whence  began  the  ascent  through  "  the  wilder- 
ness," that  is,  the  country  remote  from  towns 
or  cities. 

On  approaching  the  city  of  the  great  king, 
clouds  of  incense  envelop  the  cortege,  from 
fragrant  gums  and  spices  burned  according  to 
Oriental  customs,  still  prevalent,  during  the 
movements  of  royalty  or  dignitaries  of  highest 
rank.     The  perfumes  of  Arabia  and  India  are 


THE   ROYAL   PROCESSION.  I9I 

wafted  on  the  breeze,  and  as  the  glitter  of  the 
king's  car  of  state  and  of  the  flashing  blades 
of  the  cavalry  escort  is  caught  sight  of  from 
the  battlements  of  Jerusalem,  we  hear  the 
cry  of  the  crowds  of  spectators  lining  the 
walls  and  eminences.  Each  of  the  various 
speakers  points  out  what  especially  rivets  his 
attention. 

First  citizen,  or  chorus  of  spectators :  "  \\'ho  is  this 
coming  up  out  of  the  wilderness  as  in  pillars  of 
smoke,  perfumed  with  myrrh  and  frankincense,  with 
all  the  powders  imported  by  the  merchants  ?  " 

Second  citizen :  "  Look,  it  is  the  palanquin  of  Sol- 
omon. Threescore  mighty  men  are  round  about 
it  of  the  veterans  of  Israel." 

The  admiration  of  the  people  for  the  Gib- 
borim,  or  veterans,  many  of  them,  it  may  be, 
scarred  in  numerous  battles,  is  very  great,  al- 
beit most  of  them  were  foreigners.  They 
formed  the  life-guard  of  the  king,  and  carried 
out  his  orders,  however  terrible  or  despotic. 
Such  a  military  convoy  was  needed,  for  even 
Solomon,  who  had  sent  so  many  others  to 
death,  could  not  travel  through  his  own  domin- 
ions, in  which  were  many  tribes  and  national- 
ities, with  entire  safety.  Besides,  with  all  his 
public  works,  extravagant  architecture,  and 
costly  navy,  dazzling  luxuriance  in  the  city 
and  lavish  expenditure   on    pleasure-seats,  he 


192  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

never  gave  the  country  either  a  good  police 
system,  or  first-class  administration  of  public 
roads.  The  robber  by  day  on  the  road  to 
Jericho  still  waylaid,  and  the  nocturnal  ma- 
rauder still  prowled,  so  that  the  keen  blades  of 
the  Gibborim  guards  were  very  apt  to  be  use- 
ful as  well  as  ornamental.  Of  the  valor  and 
ability  of  this  superb  corps,  there  was  no  pop- 
ular doubt. 

Third  citizen:  "They  all  handle  the  sword  and 
are  expert  in  war.  Every  man  hath  his  sword 
upon  his  thigh  because  of  fear  in  the  night." 

With  the  introduction  of  horses  and  chariots 
into  Israel,  not  only  the  war  vehicles  and  facil- 
ities for  ordinary  transportation  were  greatly 
improved  upon,  as  compared  with  the  old  days 
of  the  mule  and  litter,  but  in  traveling  equi- 
page also  wonders  of  comfort  and  luxury  were 
wrought.  The  inittah  here  spoken  of  was  a 
palanquin  or  reclining  bed,  or  more  properly  a 
portable  room  or  chamber,  borne  on  the  backs 
of  draught  animals,  and  as  luxuriant  in  its  way 
as  the  palace  or  boudoir  car  of  to-day.  In  his 
own  "  private  car,"  Solomon  was  accustomed 
to  travel  from  Beersheba,  where  the  limits  of 
fertile  land  met  the  southern  desert,  to  Dan, 
where  the  mountains  of  Lebanon  made  the 
northern  frontier.  In  cars  or  palanquins  sim- 
ilarly transported,  but  probably  far  less  costly 


THE   ROYAL    PROCESSION.  1 93 

in  construction  and  gorgeous  in  decoration,  the 
veiled  ladies  of  the  harem  traveled.  In  one  of 
these  wheelless  carriages  of  the  royal  train  we 
may  imagine  the  Shulamite  traveling  far  from 
her  home  to  the  great  city,  possibly  even  with 
the  honors  of  a  queen. 

All  eyes,  however,  are  directed  to  the  royal 
palanquin,  ordinarily  set  apart  for  the  king's 
use  only,  yet  to-day  holding  a  new  occupant. 
The  fame  of  the  beautiful  Shulamite,  the  lat- 
est object  of  the  favor  of  Solomon,  has  pre- 
ceded both  to  the  capital  city ;  and  now, 
though  the  cedar  and  fragrant  woods,  the  gold 
and  silver  ornaments,  the  railings  of  precious 
metal  and  cushions  of  Tyrian  purple,  the  em- 
broidered rugs  and  inlaid  floor,  are  admired, 
yet  the  target  of  all  eyes  is  the  lily  of  the 
northern  valleys. 

Fourth  citizen:  "King  Solomon  had  made  for 
himself  a  traveling-room  of  the  wood  of  Lebanon. 
The  pillars  of  it  are  of  silver,  the  back-rest  of  gold, 
the  seat  of  purple,  the  interior  beautified  by  the 
one  called  '  love '  above  the  daughters  of  Jerusa- 
lem." 

The  voice  of  a  fifth  spectator,  or  of  a  chorus, 
bids  the  women  of  the  old  city,  Zion,  to  come 
out  of  their  houses  and  look  forth  from  the  ter- 
races, roofs,  and  gardens,  as  the  train  sweeps 
through  the  city  gates  and  up  into  the  avenues 


194  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

of   the  new  city  built  upon  Moriah  and   the 
hills. 

"  Come  forth,  O  ye  daughters  of  Zion,  and  be- 
hold King  Solomon  with  the  crown  with  which  his 
mother  crowned  him  in  the  day  of  his  espousals, 
and  in  the  day  of  his  gladness  of  heart." 

In  Hebrew  idea  the  city  was  the  mother, 
and  the  inhabitants  the  sons  and  daughters. 
The  "  daughters  of  Zion,"  who  here  appear  in 
public,  are  the  honorable  women  living  in  the 
old  city  of  David,  the  city  proper  of  homes  and 
dwellings,  and  not  in  the  new  and  garish  part 
of  the  capital  where  the  "daughters  of  Jeru- 
salem," or  inmates  of  the  harem,  dwelt.  Be- 
tween the  two  hills  of  Zion  and  Moriah  there 
was  a  valley  or  ravine,  called  later  the  Tyro- 
poeon,  one  hundred  feet  deep,  which  Solomon 
had  crossed  by  a  massive  viaduct  built  on  piers 
and  arches.  The  bridge,  from  the  solid  ma- 
sonry on  the  southwest  angle  of  the  temple  to 
the  first  of  the  series  of  piers  built  over  the 
valley,  was  nearly  fifty  feet  long,  a  fragment  of 
its  northern  end  being  yet  seen  in  "Robinson's 
arch."  The  daughters,  or  women  of  Zion,  are 
invited  to  take  a  look  at  their  sovereign,  who 
to-day  wears  his  kingly  robes,  and  on  his  head, 
if  not  the  emblem  of  kingly  power,  the  chaplet 
of  the  expectant  bridegroom.  Is  it  possible 
that  he  offers  to  make  the  Shulamite  one  of 


THE  ROYAL   PROCESSION.  1 95 

his  wives  of  first  grade  ?  That  the  country- 
maid  is  not  only  to  join  the  harem,  but  to  take 
high  rank  in  it,  as  a  princess  ? 

So  ends  the  first  strophe  of  the  third  canto. 
The  reference  to  Solomon's  day  of  nuptials 
and  coronation  recalls  his  marriage  with  the 
Egyptian  princess  ;  and,  as  is  yet  the  custom 
in  the  East,  the  chaplet  or  floral  diadem  was 
placed  on  his  head  by  the  queen  mother,  the 
beautiful  Bath-sheba. 

How  times  must  have  changed  since  the 
days  of  Moses  !  Then,  Israel  was  a  slave  na- 
tion, and  an  Egyptian  looked  down  on  a  He- 
brew as  one  of  a  degraded  race,  as  a  chattel, 
but  not  a  person.  Now,  Pharaoh  makes  an  al- 
liance with  Solomon  at  the  very  beginning  of 
his  reign,  —  with  the  king  of  these  Hebrews 
whom  his  ancestors  held  as  slaves.  He  even 
assists  the  armies  of  Israel  in  putting  down 
the  Canaanitish  rebels,  and  gives  to  David's 
son  his  daughter  in  marriage.  To  furnish  her 
with  a  dowry,  the  Egyptian  father  sent  a  naval 
expedition  of  war-galleys  across  the  Mediter- 
ranean, and,  landing  at  Joppa,  reduced  and  set 
on  fire  the  town  of  Gezer,  treated  the  Canaan- 
itish inhabitants  with  the  severity  of  a  con- 
queror's rights,  and  then  bestowed  the  reve- 
nues of  the  territory  upon  his  daughter  for  her 
"pin    money,"    or,   according  to  ancient   Ian- 


196  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

guage,  "girdle  money."  It  was  possibly  in 
honor  of  Solomon  and  his  bride  that  the  45th 
psalm,  which  is  a  bridal  hymn,  an  epithala- 
niium,  was  written,  and  it  is  of  her,  the  daugh- 
ter, probably,  of  that  Shishak  whose  portraits 
yet  look  at  us  with  their  granite  eyes  in  the 
Egyptian  monuments,  that  it  is  said  : 

"The  king's  daughter  is  all  glorious  within  :  her 
clothing  is  of  wrought  gold.  She  shall  be  brought 
unto  the  king  in  raiment  of  needlework  :  the  vir- 
gins her  companions  that  follow  her  shall  be 
brought  unto  thee.  V\\\\\  gladness  and  rejoicing 
shall  they  be  brought :  they  shall  enter  into  the 
king's  palace." 

This  was  in  the  days  of  Solomon's  innocence 
and  youth.  And  if  the  pretty  princess  out 
of  sunny  rainless  Egypt  with  its  overflowing 
plenty  should,  when  leaving  father  and  mother 
to  live  in  a  foreign  land,  sometimes  feci  home- 
sick in  the  comparatively  damp  climate  of 
cloudy  and  rainy  Judea,  notwithstanding  that 
she  dwelt  in  an  ivory  palace,  that  her  lover 
was  royal,  and  that  her  husband  was  a  king, 
what  then  } 

Hear  what  is  said  : 

"  Hearken,  O  daughter,  and  consider,  and  incline 
thine  ear  ;  forget  also  thine  own  people,  and  thy 
father's  house.  So  shall  the  king  greatly  desire  thy 
beauty ;  for  he  is  thy  Lord,  worship  thou  him.  .  .  . 


THE  ROYAL  PROCESSION.  197 

Instead  of  thy  fathers  shall  be  thy  children, 
whom  thou  mayest  make  princes  in  all  the  earth. 
I  will  make  thy  name  to  be  remembered  in  all  gen- 
erations :  therefore  shall  the  people  praise  thee  for- 
ever and  ever." 

This  happy  event,  remember,  was  at  the 
opening  of  Solomon's  reign,  before  even  the 
temple  had  been  built,  before  Jerusalem  had 
become  the  superbly  adorned  city  full  of  the 
metropolitan  splendor  of  later  days  ;  so  that  the 
lovely  princess  at  first  lived  for  some  years  in 
the  old  part  of  David's  city,  on  Zion  hill,  until 
her  palace  was  built. 

Now,  let  us  ask.  How  did  Solomon  the  bride- 
groom in  his  later  years  act  out  the  spirit  of 
husbandly  loyalty.-*  Alas,  we  know  too  well 
what  the  years  brought ;  for  Solomon's  life  de- 
generated from  spirituality  to  worldliness  and 
lust.  He  violated  the  express  commands  of 
God,  and  multiplied  wives,  dancing-girls,  and 
concubines  until  he  became  a  sultan  with  a 
harem.  True,  there  have  been  harems  larger 
than  those  which  the  Hebrew  emperor  reared 
and  filled,  but  this  is  slight  palliation  of  his 
iniquity.  Well  said  a  certain  writer,  "  Europe 
could  not  have  had  a  Solomon,"  for  Israel's 
king  was  an  Asiatic  of  Asiatics. 

Here,  in  the  Canticle,  we  find  him,  in  addi- 
tion to  his  heathen  wives,  endeavoring  to  win 


198  STUDIES  AND    COMMENTS. 

over  to  his  harem  the  Hebrew  maiden,  the 
Shulamite,  who  has  thus  far  resisted  royal  bland- 
ishments, and  remains  faithful  to  her  shepherd 
affianced.  Having  failed  to  gain  her  by  or- 
dinary addresses,  or  possibly  taking  it  for 
granted  that  his  spoken  wish  was  enough, 
Solomon  puts  on  his  royal  robes  and  the 
crown  of  a  prospective  bridegroom,  and  in  all 
the  pomp  of  a  public  procession  enters  city 
and  palace  with  the  idea  that  the  "fairest 
woman  in  the  kingdom  "  is  already  his  own. 

Far  away  from  home  in  a  gilded  prison,  the 
palace  in  Jerusalem,  the  maiden  of  Shunem 
still  remembers  her  beloved. 


ACT  III.    SCENE  II. 
LOVE-MAKING   IN    THE    PALACE. 

Chapter  IV.  1-5,  7. 

The  difficulty  of  interpretation  of  the  poem 
is  illustrated  to  the  student  of  the  various  com- 
mentators on  the  Hebrew  text  who  disagree 
as  to  the  exact  situation  here.  Ginsburg  thinks 
"  the  shepherd,  who  had  followed  afar  off  the 
royal  train  in  which  his  beloved  was  conveyed 
to  the  capital,  obtains  an  interview  with  her, 
and  is  now  addressing  her."  Renan,  Delitzsch, 
and  many  others  consider  that  it  is  Solomon 
who  is  speaking  these  words  of  praise.  To 
our  mind  the  idea  of  the  poet  seems  to  be  to 
represent  the  lover  as  absent  in  body  until  the 
final  scene,  but  ever  present  in  spirit  to  the 
imagination  of  the  Shulamite.  The  apparent 
interviews  are  those  of  dream,  trance,  nar- 
ration, or  reminiscence.  The  real  trial  of  the 
maiden's  pure  love  consists,  as  it  seems  to 
us,  in  the  actual  absence  of  her  beloved  even 
when  her  temptations  are  greatest  in  the  pres- 
ence of  a  king  who  wills  to  woo,  but  who  may 
command. 


200  STUDIES  AXD   COMMENTS. 

Having  braided  her  long  black  hair,  made 
her  toilet,  and  arrayed  herself  in  the  apparel 
befitting  an  inmate  of  the  palace,  we  may  im- 
agine her  looking  more  like  a  princess  than 
before.  How  the  toilette  of  the  Hebrew  lady 
impressed  Isaiah  may  be  read  in  that  remarka- 
ble passage  in  his  third  chapter,  which  contains 
an  inventory  of  a  lady's  costume.  Viewing 
herself  in  the  mirror,  we  can  imagine  the  fair 
young  girl  murmuring  to  herself,  "  I  know 
what  my  beloved  would  say  to  me,  could  he 
see  me  now.  Would  he  not  repeat  what  he 
has  told  me  before  .•*  " 

We  can  imagine  the  "  beloved "  speaking 
soft  words  of  love,  and  praising  her  in  terms 
of  Oriental  metaphors  too  warm  for  our  cold 
Western  taste  ;  but  the  speaker  who  now  ad- 
dresses the  Shulamite  is  a  man  of  the  world, 
who  is  familiar  with  refinements  and  the  artifi- 
cial adornments  of  nature.  He  takes  a  poetic 
and  critical  view  of  the  landscape,  and  the 
features  he  most  dwells  upon  are  not  those  of 
untamed  nature,  but  of  a  cultivated  country. 
There  is  no  white  heat  of  passion  here,  only 
propriety  and  faultless  rhetoric.  Hear  this 
connoisseur  of  beauty  in  the  human  figure  and 
in  civilization  pour  out  his  praises  : 

"  Behold  thou  art  lovely,  my  dear.  Thine  eyes  are 
as  doves  between  thy  locks.     Thy  hair  is  like  a 


LOVE-MAKING  IN   THE  PALACE.        20I 

flock  of  goats  springing  down  mount  Gilead.  Thy 
teeth  are  like  sheep  coming  up  white  from  the 
washing,  all  bearing  twins  and  not  one  of  them 
sterile.  Thy  lips  are  like  a  crimson  thread,  thy 
mouth  is  lovely,  and  like  cut  pomegranates  are  the 
temples  between  thy  locks.  Thy  neck  is  like  the 
tower  of  David  built  for  trophies,  whereon  are 
hung  a  thousand  bucklers,  all  the  shields  of  mighty 
men.  Thy  two  breasts  are  like  two  fawns,  that  are 
twins  of  a  gazelle." 

Does  the  king's  speech  end  here.?  Or,  after 
this  sevenfold  description  of  her  charms,  does 
he  add  the  words  which  may  have  slipped  out 
of  their  place  under  the  pen  of  a  copyist,  and 
which  are  found  just  below  in  verse  seventh,  — 
"Thou  art  all  fair  my  love,  and  there  is  no 
spot  in  thee  "  .-•  This  is  sometimes  the  Hebrew 
method  of  beginning  and  ending  a  poem,  to 
have  the  first  and  last  line  alike,  or  nearly  so 
in  form. 

Snow-white  sheep,  ebony-black  goats,  pome- 
granates cut  for  the  table,  and  silken  or  byssus 
thread  dyed  red,  the  memorial  tower  hung  with 
war-trophies,  are  the  terms  of  comparison  with 
which  the  polished  royal  suitor  praises  teeth, 
hair,  complexion,  neck,  and  charms  of  the 
maiden  who  has  fascinated  him.  His  diction 
is  as  different  from  the  shepherd's  as  that  of 
the  Norman  conquerors,  from  whom  came  our 


202  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

words  beef,  veal,  mutton,  and  pork,  was  from 
that  of  the  Saxons,  who  have  given  us  the 
names  of  ox,  calf,  sheep,  and  hog.  The  Nor- 
man saw  on  the  table  the  dressed  meat  selected 
from  the  animal  tended  in  the  fields  by  his  serf 
or  swineherd.  Solomon  sees  the  landscape 
from  a  pavilion  or  out  of  a  palace  window. 

Is  the  Shulamite  won  by  his  praises } 
Brought  into  the  lion's  den,  does  she  yield  } 
The  king's  wrath  is  as  the  roaring  of  a  lion  ; 
to  provoke  it  may  mean  death.  Yet  will  not 
Jehovah  deliver  her  from  his  power  ? 

Her  love,  strong  as  death,  braves  even  the 
occupant  of  the  lion-throne.  Unyielding  as 
Sheol,  she  remains  loyal  to  her  betrothed.  We 
have  heard  her  cry  before,  "  My  beloved  is 
mine,  and  I  am  his."  In  like  manner,  and 
with  the  same  intent,  she  tells  Solomon  her 
unmistakable  preference,  as  heart  and  thought 
fly  northward. 

"  Until  the  day  cool,  and  the  shadows  flee  away, 
I  will  get  me  to  the  mountain  of  myrrh  and  to  the 
hill  of  frankincense." 

In  thought  she  transports  herself  to  her 
mountain  home,  where  all  around,  or  in  sight 
of  her  cottage,  rise  the  verdant  and  fragrant 
mountains  rich  in  odorous  forests  —  vastly 
different  in  this   respect  from  the  less  richly 


LOVE-MAKING  IN  THE  PALACE.        203 

timbered  and  often  bare  hills  surrounding  Jeru- 
salem. Into  this  region,  and  over  mountains 
within  the  horizon  of  the  Shulamite  and  of 
the  northern  poet,  that  is,  over  Lebanon  and 
through  the  more  distant  Damascus,  which  is 
mentioned  in  the  Canticle,  Pompey  the  Great 
marched  centuries  afterward  on  his  way  to 
subdue  the  Jewish  nation.  Florus,  the  his- 
torian, tells  us  he  passed  "on  that  way  through 
perfumed  groves,  through  woods  of  frankin- 
cense and  balsam." 

As  appreciative  as  an  Indian  of  the  sweet 
grass  which  he  plucks  to  weave  into  his  gayly 
dyed  baskets,  or  as  a  Thoreau  of  the  witchery 
of  the  woody  odors,  so  these  unspoiled  chil- 
dren of  Israel  appreciated  more  than  the  mer- 
chant's powders  and  the  apothecaries'  mix- 
tures the  natural  fragrance  of  nature.  They 
long  to  walk  together  in  the  forest  aisles,  to 
enjoy  the  sweet  breath  of  the  balsam-woods 
when  the  summer  sun  distills  a  charm  for  the 
senses,  which  only  Lebanon  yields.  If  even  a 
whiff  from  the  pillow  which  imprisons  the  for- 
est odors  is  grateful  to  the  jaded  dweller  within 
walls,  how  must  the  homesick  girl  have  longed 
for  freedom  and  joy  again  !  This,  then,  is  her 
answer  out  of  the  lion's  den  — from  Judah  and 
Jerusalem,  from  Solomon  and  the  palace,  she 
longs  to  fly  to  her  true  love's  home  and  be 
with  him  to  whom  is  her  desire. 


204  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

A  word  here  as  to  the  artistic  form  of  the 
charming  little  poem  which  the  author  puts 
into  Solomon's  mouth,  and  also  upon  the  whole 
drama  as  a  work  of  art  in  letters.  Launched 
twenty  or  even  twenty-five  centuries  ago,  and 
once  fresh,  trim,  beautiful,  and  perfect  in  all 
its  detail  as  a  new  ship  making  first  voyage, 
how  looks  this  poetic  craft  now  ?  Once  com- 
plete from  the  master's  hand,  can  it  have 
sailed  the  seas  of  time  without  losing  spar, 
sail,  or  aught  of  use  or  beauty  ?  Or,  like  ves- 
sels home  from  long  cruises,  are  marks  of 
strain  and  stress  visible  ?  If  it  be  almost  a 
miracle  to  write  a  manuscript  or  print  a  book 
with  absolute  correctness,  despite  manifold 
methods  of  scrutiny  and  platoons  of  vigilant 
proof-readers,  can  we  suppose  a  poem,  which 
is  possibly  two  and  a  half  millenniums  old,  to 
reach  us  unscathed  ? 

These  questions  arise  when  we  study  the 
form  of  the  whole  poem,  and  then  compare  its 
parts  one  with  the  other.  Hebrew  poetry  has 
not  rhyme  or  metre  like  the  Greek,  nor  is  it 
blank  verse,  nor  is  it  in  unrhymed  stanza ; 
nevertheless  it  has  a  metrical  form,  a  rhythm, 
and  a  music  all  its  own,  in  addition  to  its  strik- 
ing feature  of  parallelism.  Some  scholars 
whose  ears  are  attuned  to  the  harmonies,  and 
whose  eyes  see  the  beautiful  interior  anatomy, 


LOVE-MAKING  IN  THE  PALACE.        20$ 

as  well  as  the  exquisite  outward  form  of  the 
Canticle,  say  that  the  lines  of  the  poetry  are 
dislocated  between  verses  5  and  8.  Through 
the  mistake  of  a  scribe,  a  line  has  been  lost,  and 
two  others  have  changed  places.  The  restora- 
tion which  they  suggest  brings  both  the  metri- 
cal and  artistic  forms  into  closer  correspon- 
dence with  the  other  members  of  the  poem, 
thus  making  unity.  However  interpreters  may 
disagree,  there  is  hardly  standing  room  to  one 
who  doubts  the  consummate  beauty  of  the 
Canticle  as  a  work  of  art. 

Making  the  proposed  alteration,  we  have  the 
end  of  Solomon's  address  quite  similar  to  the 
beginning,  while  the  reply  of  the  Shulamite 
(remembering  that  the  words  "  his  flock  "  are 
supplied  in  each  case)  is  likewise  nearly  the 
same  as  in  chapter  ii.  16,  17  ;  and  vi.  3. 

"  My  beloved  is  mine  and  I  am  his,  he  feeds  [his 

flock]  among  the  lilies. 

"  Until  the  day  be  cool,  and  the  shadows  flee 
away,"  etc. 

Unfortunately,  in  the  discussion  of  the  ques- 
tion of  literary  form,  the  element  of  doctrinal 
interpretation  enters  in  to  confuse  the  inquiry 
as  to  fact  and  truth.  The  allegorists  violently 
oppose  the  emendation  which  the  upholders 
of  the  natural  theory  propose.  It  may  be 
said,  as  helping  the  English  reader,  that  in  the 


206  STUDIES  AND    COMMENTS. 

poem  it  is  only  the  shepherd  who  "  feeds  [his 
flock]  among  the  lilies"  (chap.  i.  7  ;  ii.  16  ;  vi. 
3);  and  that  the  Hebrew  word  for  "feed" 
does  not  signify  to  eat  or  to  partake  of  food, 
but  means  to  lead  or  conduct  [to  pasture],  and 
is  almost  exclusively  used  of  shepherds  with 
domesticated  animals.  The  roe  or  gazelle  is 
nowhere  mentioned  in  the  Scriptures  as  feed- 
ing, but  as  being  in  motion,  as  hunted,  or  as 
furnishing  game  food.  In  Proverbs,  chapter  v. 
19,  where  we  have  probably  a  reference  to  the 
passage  before  us  (Song  of  Songs,  iv.  5),  the 
thought  and  sensuous  imagery  are  nearly  sim- 
ilar, but  there  is  nothing  said  as  to  "feeding" 
or  "lilies."  These  special  words  in  the  Canti- 
cle are  applied  to  the  shepherd  only. 

Concerning  the  pretty  poem  of  Solomon  in 
praise  of  the  Shulamite,  which  begins  and  ends 
with  "Thou  art  fair,  my  love,"  does  it  not  sug- 
gest, as  to  this  point  of  literary  likeness,  both 
the  "  Bow-song,"  or  lament  of  David  over  Saul 
and  Jonathan  (2  Samuel  i.  19-27),  and  the 
eighth  psalm  }  Of  the  author  of  this  latter 
praise-song  of  Israel,  the  writer  of  the  Epistle 
to  the  Hebrews  says,  "  one  in  a  certain  place  ;  " 
while  the  title-maker  and  editor  of  the  first 
great  Hebrew  hymn-book  says,  "  A  Psalm  of 
David." 

The  true  text  of  the  Bible  does  not  contra- 


LOVE-MAKING  IN  THE  PALACE.        207 

diet  itself.  Did  the  poet  of  the  Canticle  write 
both  the  "  Psalm  of  the  Astronomer  "  and  the 
passage  in  Canticles  we  have  just  studied  ?  It 
seems  reasonably  certain,  at  least,  that  the  liter- 
ary model  of  the  three  poems  was  the  same. 

Such  questions  may  never  receive  satisfying 
answers.  For  spiritual  nourishment,  for  edifi- 
cation, we  do  not  need  certainty ;  but  this  is 
sure,  — we  readers  of  the  Bible  have  as  much 
right,  God -given  and  Christ-commanded,  to 
search  the  Scriptures  to-day  and  form  our  opin- 
ions, as  had  the  scribes,  Pharisees,  priests,  edi- 
tors, title-makers,  custodians,  and  traditionists 
of  the  past.  As  our  fathers  of  Germany  and 
England  and  in  the  centuries  past  did,  it  is 
ours  to  reverently  inquire,  study,  and  make  up 
our  minds  concerning  things  left  unexplained 
in  the  Scriptures.  "  If  any  man  lack  wisdom, 
let  him  ask  of  God,  who  giveth  liberally  and 
upbraideth  not." 


ACT  III.     SCENE  III. 
THE   GARDEN    OF   SPICES. 

Chapter   IV.  8-V.  i. 

Solomon  has  disappeared  from  the  scene, 
but  the  Shulamite  is  wrought  to  a  frenzy  of 
excitement  in  view  of  her  situation,  and  the 
possibility  of  a  forced  marriage.  In  vision, 
the  wish  being  parent  to  the  thought,  she  sees 
her  lover  coming  to  defy  the  lion  and  leopards 
of  authority,  and  escaping  with  her  to  the 
mountain  fastnesses  of  the  North.  In  the  lan- 
guage which  we  now  read,  the  beating  of  a 
true  lover's  heart  is  felt,  and  the  passionate  ap- 
peal sheds  a  glow  over  this  whole  strophe  of 
the  poem.  The  language  is  at  white  heat. 
He  calls  her  not  "  my  dear,"  "my  friend,"  but 
"  my  bride,"  and  she  delights  to  hear  him. 

"  Escape  with  me  !  from  Lebanon,  my  bride,  with 
me  from  Lebanon  thou  shalt  go ;  thou  shalt  go 
from  the  top  of  Amana,  from  the  summit  of  Senir, 
from  the  dens  of  the  lions,  from  the  mountains  of 
the  leopards.  Thou  hast  given  me  courage,  my 
sister,  my  bride,  thou  hast  ravished  my  heart  with 
one  look  of  thine  eyes,  with  one  jewel  of  thy  neck- 
lace." 


THE   GARDEN  OF  SPICES.  209 

Even  one  eye-glance  of  his  beloved  has  em- 
boldened him,  exciting  him  even  to  rebellion, 
to  lift  his  hand  against  king  and  law  to  secure 
the  object  of  his  love.  He  is  ready  at  every 
hazard  to  elope  with  her,  even  though  he  must 
know  the  fate  of  all  who  cross  the  will  of  Is- 
rael's despot.  The  keen  sword  of  the  secret 
assassin  would  soon  find  out  the  man  whom 
"  the  lion  "  orders  to  death,  but  her  lover,  she 
knows,  will  dare  all  things  if  she  but  say  the 
word. 

Did  the  shepherd  in  actual  clandestine  inter- 
view read  in  her  flashing  eyes  the  suggestion 
of  elopement,  or  was  it  his  own  impulse  ;  or  is 
the  whole  scene  an  ideal  one  .■'  To  our  mind, 
it  is  in  accordance  with  the  art  of  the  Hebrew 
literature  of  wisdom  to  represent  here  an  ideal 
scene. 

It  is  the  aim  of  the  poet,  as  we  read  between 
the  lines,  to  portray  this  pure  Hebrew  girl  as 
finally  victorious,  but  as  conquering  only  by 
gentleness  and  obedience  to  law.  She  is  one 
of  the  King's  daughters,  the  handmaid  of  Je- 
hovah. She  obeys  God  and  conscience  first 
and  always,  hoping  thereby  to  save  herself 
from  the  embraces  of  a  polygamist  king,  and 
to  keep,  in  obedience  to  law,  her  own  beloved. 
Hers  was  the  might  of  gentleness  which  makes 
great. 


2IO  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

The  changes  in  the  literary  form  of  the 
strophes  of  the  poem  reflect  the  conflicting 
emotions,  the  changing  moods,  of  the  maiden's 
excited  mind.  She  feels  intensely,  and  in  her 
day-dream  of  tumultuous  feeling  her  lover  is 
as  if  really  present  to  her,  breathing  in  her  ears 
the  proposal  to  escape  from  the  harem  to  her 
free  life  of  the  hills.  As  in  the  other  ideal 
scene  in  chapter  ii.,  this  waking  vision  of  her 
active  imagination  will  be  succeeded  by  a  night- 
dream,  wherein  her  thoughts  again  wander 
afar  off,  always  to  find  her  beloved,  but  in  this 
case  to  lose  him  again. 

That  is  Hebrew  poetry  —  utterly  vague  and 
misty  as  to  chronological  relation,  or  the  pro- 
cesses of  logic,  but  as  quickly  as  a  turning 
kaleidoscope  expressing  every  impulse,  every 
impression  and  emotion,  or  mixture  of  them. 
The  Western  mind,  that  looks  for  the  se- 
quences of  orderly  reasoning,  is  constantly  put 
out  at  noticing  the  gaps  and  want  of  connec- 
tion in  the  poetical  books  of  the  Bible.  To 
expect  close  reasoning,  or  the  perfect  dramatic 
movement  of  a  Greek  tragedy,  is  to  insure 
disappointment.  The  utterances  of  psalmist, 
poet,  and  prophet  remind  us  of  lovers'  con- 
versations, which  lack  logic,  are  full  of  tan- 
gents, and  contain  spaces  of  silence  even 
when  the  speakers  feel  most  intensely.     One 


THE   GARDEN  OF  SPICES.  211 

emotion  gives  place  rapidly  to  another,  in  a 
manner  that  makes  a  cold-blooded  translator 
or  commentator  despair.  If  one  adopts  the 
allegorical  method  of  interpretation,  by  which 
language  can  be  made  to  mean  anything  and 
everything,  there  is  no  difficulty ;  but  to  keep 
track  of  the  movement  of  sentiment  and  play 
of  feeling  taxes  one's  powers  of  attention  se- 
verely. 

In  the  mind  of  the  maiden  there  is  a  strug- 
gle.    Shall  she  yield  to  the  proposition  ? 

No,  she  will  not  encourage  the  shepherd  in 
wild  schemes  of  lawlessness.  She  gently  dis- 
suades him  with  a  kiss,  and  with  love's  weap- 
onry she  is  successful.  The  kiss  and  caress 
are  invincible.  The  beloved  becomes  calm, 
and  his  words  change  in  tone  and  subject. 
With  a  lover's  guile,  he  makes  further  ad- 
vances in  the  triumphs  of  the  master  passion. 

"  How  fair  is  thy  caress,  my  sister,  my  bride  : 
How  much  better  thy  love  than  wine,  and  the  fra- 
grance of  thy  perfume  than  all  spices.  Thy  lips  drop 
honey,  my  bride  ;  honey  and  milk  are  under  thy 
tongue,  and  the  fragrance  of  thy  garments  is  like 
the  fragrance  of  Lebanon." 

So  flow  the  lover's  words,  in  a  torrent  of 
rapturous  exaggerations.  As  the  bouquet  of 
wine  and  the  perfume  of  the  "soul-house,"  so 
the  luscious  lips  and  the  loveliness  of  her  per- 


212  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

son  enthrall  him.  Yet  now  he  adds  a  more 
delicate  compliment  to  her  modesty,  her  in- 
stinctive refinement,  her  chaste  life,  her  purity 
amid  court  temptation.  He  praises  her  inward 
ornaments,  her  soul's  charms.  He  antedates 
and  precedes  Solomon  in  looking  from  sensu- 
ous charms  to  the  interior  graces  of  the  spirit. 
With  consummate  art,  the  poet  puts  the  shep- 
herd in  advance  of  the  king  in  this. 

"  A  garden  locked,  thou  art,  my  sister,  my  bride ; 
a  garden  inclosed,  a  fountain  sealed.  What  sprouts 
for  thee  therein  makes  a  paradise  of  pomegranates 
with  most  excellent  fruit,  henna  and  spices,  nard 
and  saffron,  calamus  and  cinnamon,  with  all  trees 
of  frankincense,  myrrh  and  aloes,  with  all  the  chief 
spices.  Yea,  a  garden  fountain,  a  well  of  living 
waters,  a  flowing  stream  from  Lebanon,  art  thou." 

In  this  rhetorical  coloring  and  allusions  to 
the  scenery  of  his  home,  the  speeches  of  the 
young  man  beloved  of  the  Shulamite  are  quite 
different  from  those  of  the  roval  suitor.  In 
free  unstudied  diction,  which  lacks  the  perfect 
rhetorical  finish  of  the  king's  addresses^  and 
drawing  his  metaphors  from  wild  nature  within 
the  view  of  the  life  of  the  toiler,  his  words  burn 
with  passion.  With  many  a  glowing  word  of 
compliment  and  flow  of  pretty  diminutives, 
which  especially  puzzle  the  commentators  who 
seek  in  the  text  material  for  dogmatic  theology, 


THE   GARDEN  OF  SPICES.  21 3 

yet  with  thought  as  pure  as  the  waters  of 
Naaman's  favorite  stream  of  Amana,  to  which 
he  compares  his  love,  the  young  mountaineer 
utters  his  heart  to  her  who  owns  it. 

Flattery,  with  a  selfish  object  in  view,  is  one 
thing.  Ardent  love,  breathing  out  sincere 
praise,  is  another.  Flattery  of  the  wise  breeds 
in  them  disgust,  but  the  foolish  and  vain  are 
led  captive  to  the  designs  of  the  flatterer. 
True  praise  from  the  honest  should  encourage 
us,  but  the  honeyed  words  of  the  wicked 
should  humble  us.  When  the  wise  and  loving 
and  true  say  kindly  things  of  us,  holding  us 
high  in  their  estimation,  then  ought  this  to 
stimulate  us  to  fulfill  their  ideal.  Woman's 
ears  were  made  to  hear  the  music  of  love. 
Alas,  for  her  who  never  once  hears  the  tale ! 

In  truest  womanly  spirit  the  Shulamite 
maiden,  who  gave  no  response  of  favor  to  the 
polygamous  king's  advances,  now  encourages 
her  betrothed  ;  while  she  prays  that  she  may 
fill  his  ideal  of  her,  and  be  in  sober  reality 
what  he  fondly  believes  she  is.  We  must  re- 
member that  in  Palestine  the  east  wind  is  with- 
ering, and  the  west  brings  storm,  while  the 
north  is  cooling  and  refreshing,  and  the  south 
heals  and  ripens.  The  north  wind,  powerful 
and  strong,  awakes  or  arises  ;  the  south  wind 
comes  as  the  soft  breathing  zephyr.     She  in- 


214  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

vokes  the  winds  of  heaven  to  make  her  even 
more  lovely. 

"  Arise,  O  north  wind,  and  come,  thou  south 
wind,  blow  upon  my  garden,  that  its  spice-odors 
may  be  wafted  out." 

With  sweet  responsiveness,  in  guileless  love 
and  childlike  confidence,  the  maiden  yields 
thus  her  heart  and  her  all  to  her  accepted 
lover.  Her  desire  is  that  in  all  womanly 
graces  and  character  she  may  be  all  he  hopes 
of  her.     This  is  her  "  yes,"  her  full  surrender  : 

"  Let  my  beloved  come  into  his  garden  and  eat 
its  precious  fruits." 

Her  sweet  yielding  fills  him  with  a  lover's 
bliss,  and  the  second  and  last  scene  in  the 
third  canto  of  the  poem  ends  with  the  first 
verse  of  chapter  v.  The  accepted  and  happy 
shepherd-lover  responds  to  her  encouragement, 
saying  to  his  beloved,  this  "  faithful  found 
among  the  faithless,"  this  peasant  girl  who  re- 
sists a  king  in  order  to  be  true  to  her  plighted 
troth  : 

"  I  am  coming  into  my  garden,  my  sister,  my 
bride.  I  am  gathering  my  myrrh  with  my  balsam. 
I  am  eating  my  honeycomb  with  my  honey.  I  am 
drinking  my  wine  with  my  milk." 

In  true  Oriental  rhetoric,  under  the  poetic 


THE   GARDEN  OF  SPICES.  21 5 

figures  of  delicious  fruits,  sweets,  spices,  and 
drinks,  the  lover  alike  signifies  his  joy,  his 
triumph,  his  rapture,  and  his  embodied  ideal. 
To  the  affianced  couple,  happy  in  each  other's 
affection,  the  poet  adds  approving  words.  Shall 
we  put  them  in  the  mouths  of  the  court  ladies, 
who  overhear  the  Shulamite  talking  to  herself  ? 
Or,  do  we  recognize  here,  in  the  refrain  of  a 
chorus,  the  poet's  own  heart  ? 

"  Eat,  O  friends,  drink,  O  beloved,  yea,  drink 
abundantly  [of  love]." 

Thus,  if  our  interpretation  of  this  last  line 
be  correct,  the  seal  of  inspiration  and  divine 
approval  is  set  again  on  pure  love  between  one 
man  and  one  woman.  Between  two  great 
events  —  the  nuptials  in  Eden,  wherein  God 
consummated  the  first  marriage,  and  the 
wedding  of  Cana  in  Galilee,  at  which  Jesus 
sat  with  approving  smile  —  this  divine  poem 
stands  midway,  to  testify  to  the  heavenly  or- 
igin of  love  and  the  holiness  of  marriage.  For 
love  is  as  strong  as  death,  its  passion  as  in- 
flexible as  Sheol,  its  coals  are  as  coals  at  white 
heat,  because  love  is  a  fire-flame  kindled  by 
Jehovah  himself 


ACT  III.     SCENE  IV. 
THE    WAKING    HEART. 

Chapter  V.  2-VI.  3. 

As  in  the  second  movement  of  the  poem, 
which  we  have  called  Act  II.,  so  in  this  part 
of  the  development  of  the  plot,  a  night-dream 
succeeds  the  day-vision  or  ideal  scene.  The 
young  girl  falls  into  slumber  ;  her  body  re- 
maining in  the  palace,  while  her  soul  goes  out 
to  play. 

"Hark,  my  beloved  is  knocking!  Hear  his 
voice  !  '  Open  to  me,  my  sister,  my  dear,  my  dove, 
my  perfect.  My  head  is  filled  with  dew,  and  my 
locks  with  the  drops  of  the  night.' " 

The  Shulamite  girl,  by  the  dream-magic 
which  annihilates  distance,  is  no  longer  in  the 
Jerusalem  palace,  but  in  her  northern  home, 
among  her  native  hills.  She  is  not  now  attired 
in  silk  and  jewels  and  embroidered  sandals, 
but  in  her  vineyard  dress  and  with  bare  feet. 
Wearied,  after  the  day's  hard  toil,  she  has  re- 
tired very  early  to  rest,  expecting  no  visit.  In 
her  dream  she  is  again  the  simple  country  maid 


THE   WAKING  HEART.  21/ 

under  her  mother's  cottage  roof.  Suddenly 
she  hears  a  knock  at  the  door  and  a  familiar 
voice  pleading.  He  has  come  a  long  distance, 
he  is  standing  out  in  the  cold  air  after  sunset, 
in  the  chill  night  of  Palestine,  in  which  the 
dews  fall  like  rain.  He  calls  her  in  that  par- 
ticular tone  of  address  such  as  the  king  never 
uses,  and  by  which  we  may  easily  distinguish 
the  speakers  in  each  of  the  dialogues.  He  did 
not  know  the  house  would  be  closed  at  so  early 
an  hour.  He  pleads  that  she  will  arise,  dress, 
and  meet  him. 

She,  on  the  contrary,  wishing  not  to  be  dis- 
turbed, answers  coldly,  petulantly,  almost 
rudely.  Just  as  a  Hindoo  of  to-day,  if  called 
upon  after  the  lights  are  out,  makes  excuse 
that  he  will  soil  his  feet  by  rising,  so  she  de- 
clines to  open  the  door.  A  modern  lady  who 
had  retired  earlier  than  usual,  not  expecting  a 
call  or  company,  would,  less  accurately  doubt- 
less, answer  or  send  word,  "  not  at  home,"  or  at 
least,  "retired."  More  frankly,  but  with  equal 
discouragement  to  the  visitor,  the  reply  is 
made  : 

"  I  have  undressed,  how  can  I  dress  again  ?  I 
have  washed  my  feet,  how  can  I  soil  them  again  }  " 

The  idea  is  that  not  only  has  the  bath  been 
taken,  but  even  the  feet  have  been  washed,  so 


2l8  STUDIES  AND    COMMENTS. 

that  to  tread  again  on  the  earthen  floor  of  the 
cottage  would  be  undesirable.  Compare  for 
illustration  the  words  of  Christ  to  Peter  in  the 
Revision,  "  He  that  is  bathed  needeth  not  save 
to  wash  his  feet."  In  our  summer  sea-bath- 
ing, as  all  know,  we  wash  our  feet,  even  after 
the  sea-plunge,  and  then  are  clean  every  whit: 
afterwards,  we  do  not  like  to  tread  on  loose 
earth,  or  the  sandy  boards  of  the  bath-house. 
The  floor  of  the  average  house  in  the  East  is 
of  earth  ;  hence  the  Shulamite's  excuse. 

But  the  lover,  not  knowing  his  beloved  had 
already  retired  to  bed,  had  at  the  moment  of 
speaking  put  his  hand  on  the  wooden  pin  of 
the  latch,  and  holding  it  while  talking,  he  now, 
on  being  refused  so  unexpectedly,  withdraws 
his  hand  and  departs. 

Then,  —  oh,  how  true  to  life  this  is  !  Every 
good,  every  honorable  man  who  is  suitor  for  a 
maiden's  hand,  but  unexpert  in  the  mysteries 
of  a  woman's  heart  ought  to  know  it  ;  and 
would  that  the  pure  and  good  men  knew  it  as 
thoroughly  for  good,  as  wicked  men  who  play 
on  the  weakness  of  feminine  affection  know  it 
for  evil!  —  then,  after  she  has  spoken  harsh,  re- 
pelling words,  and  driven  her  lover  off,  there 
comes  to  her  a  revulsion  of  feeling.  Her  heart 
within  her  is  moved.  When  a  woman  denies 
you  harshly,  she  is  sure  to  be  sorry  she  did  it. 


THE  WAKING  HEART.  219 

A  woman's  "  no  "  often  means  "  yes  "  —  if  you 
don't  try  to  win  her  too  easily.  So,  forgetting 
all  her  excuses,  the  Shulamite  girl  dresses  has- 
tily, and  rushes  to  the  door.  Whether  sug- 
gested in  poetic  hyperbole,  or  as  a  literal  fact, 
that  the  lover  has  come  dressed  in  his  best 
clothes,  and  all  perfumed  to  make  his  visit  to 
his  beloved,  the  latch  is  redolent  with  myrrh. 
Myrrh  is  the  inexpensive  drug  with  which  even 
a  poor  shepherd  could  add  to  his  personal  at- 
tractions, and  which,  we  may  remember,  being 
last  and  humblest  of  the  three  Magi's  offer- 
ings to  the  infant  Christ,  tradition  assigns  to 
the  slave,  the  king  bringing  gold,  and  the 
nobleman  frankincense. 

Lifting  the  latch  and  opening  the  cottage 
door,  she  hopes  to  catch  sight  of  her  lover's 
departing  figure,  but  he  has  vanished  in  the 
night's  darkness.  She  strains  her  ear  to  catch 
the  echo  of  his  distant  footfalls,  but  in  vain. 
Her  heart  sinks,  as  she  realizes  how  hard,  se- 
vere, cruel,  she  has  been.  She  calls,  but  no 
answer,  and  the  night  but  mocks  her  cries. 
She  rushes  into  the  void  to  seek  and  call  him 
back. 

"  My  love  put  his  hand  at  the  door-hole,  and  my 
heart  was  moved  within  me ;  I  rose  to  open  to  my 
beloved,  and  my  hands  dropped  myrrh,  and  my  fin- 
gers with  liquid   myrrh,  upon  the    handles  of  the 


220  STUDIES  AND  COMMENTS. 

bolt.  I  opened  to  my  beloved,  but  my  beloved  had 
turned  away  —  he  was  gone  !  My  soul  went  forth 
to  him  when  he  spoke  ;  I  sought  him,  but  I  found 
him  not.  I  called  to  him,  but  he  did  not  answer 
me." 

Then,  by  that  strange  mixture  of  situations 
that  belongs  to  dreams,  and  which  the  Bible 
felicitously  exhibits,  she  finds  herself  not  in 
the  neighborhood  of  her  home  in  Galilee  in 
which  the  dream  began,  but  a  hundred  miles 
away  in  the  streets  of  Jerusalem.  There  the 
watchmen,  about  whom  she  dreamed  once  be- 
fore, meet  her.  Evidently,  and  in  reality,  she 
had  a  dread  of  these  officers  of  the  law,  for 
twice  have  they  appeared  in  her  dreams.  Now, 
they  treat  her  as  a  thief  or  a  disorderly  char- 
acter. They  beat  her,  they  wound  her,  they 
pull  off  her  veil, — the  highest  insult  to  an 
Oriental  woman  ;  to  wear  the  veil  being  an 
honor,  to  have  it  torn  off,  dishonor, 

"  Yes,  the  ruffians,  the  sentinels  on  the  walls 
did  it,"  she  cries  with  emphasis,  as  she  wakes 
up  and  thinks  of  her  dream. 

How  important  to  social  propriety  in  the 
costume  of  an  Oriental  lady  the  veil  or  veii- 
garment  was,  is  shown  by  the  concern  of  Re- 
becca on  coming  in  sight  of  Isaac,  in  Genesis 
xxiv.  64,  65.  The  characteristic  token  of  a 
woman's  being  betrothed  or  married  was  the 


THE    WAKING  HEART.  221 

veil.  It  was  a  sign,  easily  and  purposely  re- 
cognizable in  public,  that  she  no  longer  be- 
longed to  herself,  but  was  part  of  another. 
To  express  the  same  purport  the  betrothed 
maidens  and  the  wives  of  Jap^n  formerly 
stained  their  teeth  black  and  shaved  off  their 
eyebrows,  thus  veiling  their  beauty.  It  was 
this  idea  of  the  veil  as  a  symbol  of  "  power  on 
her  head,"  or  "a  sign  of  [her  husband's]  au- 
thority," to  which  Paul  referred,  in  i  Cor.  xi. 
10.  To  the  Hebrew  maiden  the  veil  was  at 
once  honor  and  protection. 

To  return  to  the  dreaming  Shulamite,  we 
find  her  waking  up,  startled  and  alarmed  at 
finding  the  sad  reality  of  her  position.  Was 
she  overheard  talking  in  her  sleep,  or  weeping, 
or  crying  out.?  Do  the  ladies  of  the  harem 
question  her  t  She  thus  makes  answer  to  their 
inquiries  : 

"  I  adjure  you,  daughters  of  Jerusalem  !  O  that 
you  would  find  my  beloved.  And  what  will  you  tell 
him  ?  —  that  I  am  sick  with  love." 

Is  this  her  cry  of  despair  }  Must  she  yield 
to  the  king,  because  of  her  very  helplessness  } 

Man's  sorrows  are,  in  all  literature  and  in  the 
Bible,  told  often  enough.  Woman  must  take 
the  iron  into  her  soul,  and  complain  not. 
For  her  travail,  pain,  physical  woes,  the  He- 


222  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

brew  prophets  and  the  Man  of  Sorrows  spake 
often  in  tenderest  compassion.  With  the 
griefs  of  the  mind,  there  is  for  woman  less 
sympathy,  in  expression  at  least.  It  was  a 
man  who  cried  out,  "  Lover  and  friend  hast 
Thou  put  far  from  me,  and  mine  acquaintance 
into  darkness."  In  chapter  xxix.  of  the  great 
spiritual  drama  of  Job,  the  suffering  hero  utters 
his  great  cry  de profwidis  that  yet  rises  into  a 
victor's  recognition  of  his  Kinsman-rescuer, 
who  is  to  stand  Survivor  and  Vindicator  over 
his  dust.  Yet  here  is  a  woman  with  breaking 
heart,  in  mortal  terror,  and  in  mental  travail, 
who,  in  the  darkest  hour  that  comes  before  the 
dawn,  might  have  joined  the  cry  of  the  Psalmist 
and  the  man  of  Uz,  and  uttered  them  in  pathos 
of  equal  suffering.  Surely  for  her  there  must 
be  deliverance  from  One  who  in  rescuing  her 
will  exalt  his  name  Jah. 


ACT   IV.     SCENE   I. 
THE    BELOVED    AND    HIS   CHARMS. 

Chapter   V.  9-VI.  3. 

A  VERY  remarkable  feature  of  the  Song  of 
Songs  is  the  frequent  description  of  the  human 
body  and  its  members.  In  other  parts  of  Scrip- 
ture, and  especially  in  the  books  of  wisdom, 
the  body  in  whole  or  part  is  indeed  referred  to, 
and  its  interior  arrangements  or  external  ap- 
pearance described.  In  the  Book  of  Job,  in 
Psalm  cxxxix.  and  others,  and  in  Ecclesiastes, 
chapter  xii.,  where  under  the  figure  of  a  house 
the  human  body  is  scanned  with  a  poet's  eye, 
we  have  detailed  allusions  to  the  human  fig- 
ure. In  the  Canticle,  however,  we  find  no 
fewer  than  five  minute  and  separate  descrip- 
tions of  the  physical  appearance  of  the  persons 
in  the  drama.  Three  of  these  are  by  Solomon 
of  the  Shulamite,  one  is  by  the  Shulamite  of 
her  lover,  and  one  of  the  Shulamite  by  the 
court  ladies.  All  in  the  Canticle  treat  of  the 
e.xternal  attractions  of  the  body  and  its  mem- 
bers, in  terms  of  sensuous  admiration  ;  whereas 
in  the  other   poetical   books  of  the  Hebrews 


224  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

the  language  is  that  of  reflection,  the  view 
being  directed  to  the  wonders  of  the  inward 
economy. 

In  this  scene  we  find  that  the  Shulamite, 
having  been  thrice  told  of  her  own  attractions, 
now  proceeds  to  describe  those  of  her  beloved, 
the  shepherd. 

The  curiosity  of  the  court  ladies  being 
aroused  by  the  constant  references  of  the  Shu- 
lamite to  her  "  beloved,"  they  inquire  of  her, 
and  ask  her  to  tell  them  who  and  what  he  is. 
In  their  language  do  we  not  detect  a  tone  of 
pique  and  the  sarcasm  which  we  heard  before } 
Her  persistent  talk  and  one  idea  have  become 
monotonous.     They  ask : 

"  What  is  this  beloved  of  yours  more  than  any 
other  beloved,  you  prettiest  woman  in  the  world  ? 
What  is  your  beloved  any  more  than  any  other  be- 
loved, that  you  adjure  us  in  this  style  ?  " 

Then,  excited  to  enthusiasm,  as  people 
deeply  in  love  invariably  are  when  any  one 
speaks  against  the  one  they  elect  favorite,  —  for 
one  easy  way  to  discover  what  a  maiden  thinks 
of  her  real  or  supposed  lov^er  is  to  attack  and 
abuse  him,  — the  Shulamite  bursts  out  for  the 
first  time  in  impassioned  praise  of  the  charms 
of  her  betrothed. 

"  What  is  my  beloved,  do  you  ask  ?  — 


THE  BELOVED  AND  HIS  CHARMS.        225 

"  He  is  glowing  white  and  blood  red,  as  a  stand- 
ard-bearer among  a  myriad.  His  head  is  pure  gold, 
his  locks  are  bushy,  curl  upon  curl,  and  black  as 
the  raven.  His  eyes  are  as  doves  by  brooks  of 
water,  bathing  in  milk  set  in  brimming  vessels. 
His  cheeks  are  as  beds  of  balsam,  as  banks  of 
sweet  herbs.  His  lips  are  lilies  dropping  odorous 
dew.  His  hands  are  cylinders  of  gold  tipped  with 
topaz.  His  body  is  a  figure  of  bright  ivory  inlaid 
with  sapphires.  His  legs  are  columns  of  white  mar- 
ble set  on  bases  of  gold.  His  aspect  is  as  Lebanon, 
impressive  as  the  majestic  cedars.  His  speech  is 
most  sweet,  and  his  whole  person  is  altogether 
lovely.  This  (in  answer  to  your  question),  ladies  of 
Jerusalem,  is  my  lover,  my  friend." 

With  warmth  of  Oriental  exaggeration,  but 
in  chaste  poetic  phrase,  the  maid  of  Galilee 
portrays  the  manly  beauty  of  him  who  to  her 
is  the  one  altogether  lovely  and  the  chief  among 
ten  thousand.  With  exquisite  abandon,  this 
unsophisticated  girl  describes  her  beloved  in 
terms  of  sensuous  admiration.  To  her  maga- 
zine of  symbols  drawn  from  nature  and  the 
landscape  of  her  home,  she  adds  others  newly- 
acquired  from  her  luxurious  surroundings  in 
the  royal  palace.  Hers  is  not  the  praise  of  a 
sage,  an  aged  and  reflective  student,  as  in  the 
description  of  the  human  body  as  a  house  in 
the  last  chapter  of  Ecclesiastes,  with  its  subtle 


226  STUDIES  AND  COMMENTS. 

allusions  to  anatomy  and  the  marvelous  func- 
tions of  the  various  organs.  She  sees  indeed 
the  veins  that  appear  through  the  transparent 
skin  of  her  beloved,  but  there  is  no  suggestion 
of  the  circulation,  nor  reference  to  the  cistern, 
or  wheel  or  pitcher  at  the  fountain,  but  only 
the  contrasting  colors  of  ivory  and  sapphire. 
So  the  fingers  and  legs  are  not  seen  with  the 
eye  of  an  anatomist,  but  the  pretty  contrasts  in 
tint  between  the  healthy  skin  and  the  rosy  fin- 
ger-nail, and  in  the  column's  shaft  and  base  of 
limb  and  foot,  are  noted  with  admiration. 
Hers  is  the  language  of  youthful  enthusiasm. 
Her  descriptions  are  those  of  an  inexperienced 
young  girl.  With  unerring  artistic  sense,  the 
poet  is  here  true  to  life. 

The  ladies  of  the  harem  are  interested  at 
least  in  her  fluent  encomiums.  They  are  burn- 
ing with  curiosity  to  behold  this  paragon  of 
manly  beauty.  They  offer  to  go  with  her  to 
find  him.  Reverting  to  the  dream,  in  which 
he  turned  away  from  the  doorstep,  they  ask : 

"  Whither  has  thy  beloved  gone,  thou  fairest 
among  women,  whither  has  thy  beloved  turned, 
that  we  may  seek  him  with  thee?  " 

Their  curiosity  is  becoming  dangerous,  and 
she  must  evade  their  request.     She  answers  : 

"  My  beloved  has  gone  down  to  his  garden,  to 


THE  BELOVED  AND  HIS  CHARMS.      22/ 

the  beds  of  spices,  to  feed  in  the  gardens,  and  to 
gather  lilies." 

Thus  baffling  her  inquisitors,  the  scene  ends 
as  usual  in  this  poem,  by  the  refrain  of  unwav- 
ering love  : 

"  My  beloved  is  mine  and  I  ana  his.  He  feedeth 
his  flock  amonsf  the  lilies." 


'O 


This  is  the  lover  whom  the  poet  of  the  Can- 
ticle pictures,  and  this  is  the  nature  of  her  sore 
trial  to  be  perforce  away  from  him  and  endure 
separation.  No  picture  here,  in  this  holy  poem, 
of  gross  and  carnal  delights  inflaming  fleshly 
lust.  The  lover  dwells  upon  mountains  that 
are  distant,  retreats  to  the  garden  of  spices, 
and  feeds  his  flock  among  the  lilies.  An  un- 
earthly glory  seems  to  wrap  him  round.  In 
mind  he  seems  ever  near.  In  chaste  love  of 
the  spirit  he  is  at  hand.  Youth,  beauty,  wis- 
dom, strength,  are  all  his,  and  to  her  pure 
mind  he  is  present,  congenial,  devoted,  getting 
and  giving  happiness,  but  at  the  suggestion  of 
the  intruder's  presence,  of  aught  gross  or  carnal, 
he  is  far  off,  unattainable,  like  an  ideal  that 
ever  eludes. 

Yet  the  maiden  loves  him  all  the  more,  even 
while  her  eyes  hunger  for  a  sight  of  his  form 
and  her  heart  yearns  for  his  presence.  The 
poet  purposely  makes  this  the  burden  of  her 


228  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

trial,  —  to  be  kept  long  absent  from  him  that 
she  may  be  tested.  She  is  the  one  to  be  proved, 
not  he.  And  thus,  with  superfine  art,  or  divine 
inspiration,  —  shall  we  say  both  .'*  —  the  Shula- 
mite  becomes  to  us  a  type  of  those  who,  not 
having  seen,  love  with  joy  unspeakable  and  full 
of  glory  the  great  Lover  of  our  souls. 

We  have  but  again  to  compare  the  addresses 
of  the  shepherd-lover  with  those  of  the  king, 
to  see  clearly  the  nature  of  real  love  and  of  am- 
bition or  carnal  desire.  The  intention  of  the 
poet,  and  of  the  Divine  Spirit  who  inspired  the 
poet,  we  doubt  not,  is  that  we  all  should  see 
and  discriminate. 

Let  lover  and  maid  alike  study  this  book, 
and  by  it  cleanse  their  love  from  earthly  stain. 
Truly  the  young  man  in  love,  or  who  may  some 
day  be  in  love,  and  the  heart  of  youth  may 
ever  ask,  "  Wherewithal  shall  a  young  man 
cleanse  his  ways  .? "  And  the  answer  is,  "  By 
taking  heed  thereto,  according  to  thy  Word," 
—  the  Word  in  which  this  Canticle  is  set  as  a 
gem.  Surely  we  need  no  allegory,  no  mysti- 
cism, to  cover  up  the  pure  and  lofty  meaning 
of  this  holy  book.  Strange,  indeed,  if  in  all 
the  revelation  of  God  to  man  there  were  no 
message  for  human  love  ;  but  the  message  is 
here. 


ACT  IV.     SCENE  II. 
COMPARED    WITH    PRINCESSES. 

Chapter  VI.  4.-VII.  10. 

Language  is  petrified  history.  As  the  pol- 
ished marble  which  tops  the  tables  in  our 
drawing-rooms  reveals  the  forms  of  ocean  life 
in  the  primeval  world,  so  the  fossil  words  of  a 
language  uncover  man's  thoughts.  The  geol- 
ogist constructs  his  map  and  calendar  by  ex- 
amination and  location  of  the  deposits  in  the 
rocks,  and  tells  the  visionary  miner  whether  it 
is  possible  or  impossible  to  find  gold  or  coal, 
and  whether  the  relics  found  of  man  or  brute 
are  of  yesterday  or  of  the  ages,  naturally  de- 
posited or  artificial,  anachronous,  and  foreign, 

A  study  of  words  is  as  interesting  as  that 
of  bones  or  footprints,  and  the  Bible  reads 
like  a  new  book,  its  passages  glow  afresh  with 
a  glory  all  their  own,  when  read  not  in  the 
ten  thousand  broken  lights  of  tradition,  but 
according  to  the  root-meanings.  Eloquently 
does  the  Hebrew  reveal  the  primitive  state  of 
society  in  the  land  of  Jehovah.  With  equal 
suggestiveness  do  the  intruded  foreign  words 


230  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

tell  their  own  story,  Satan  can  easily  be 
picked  out  among  the  sons  of  God.  Speech 
is  a  subtle  betrayer,  not  alone  of  Peter,  but  of 
itself. 

In  illustration  of  this  is  the  word  pilcgesh, 
which  in  every  book  of  the  English  form  of 
the  Old  Testament,  except  Daniel,  stands  for 
concubine,  or  half-wife.  This  is  a  foreign 
word  and  does  not  belong  to  the  Hebrew 
tongue.  The  speech  of  the  Semitic  tribes  and 
clans,  the  patriarchs  and  prophets  of  Israel, 
used  only  the  simple  august  words  "  woman," 
"  wife."  These  are  names  sufficient  for  kings, 
priests,  prophets,  and  the  Christ  who  always 
addressed  his  mother  by  the  grand  title  of 
"woman." 

In  the  ancient  unlu.xurious  ages  of  sim- 
plicity and  chastity,  when  the  laws  requiring 
personal  purity  were  severe  but  wholesome, 
no  word  for  concubine  existed,  for  none  was 
necessary.  A  man  even  like  Abraham  might 
have  other  women  in  his  household  beside 
the  first  and  true  wife,  but  this  was  for  the 
sake  of  heirs,  and  such  subordinate  women 
were  as  servants,  and  subject  to  the  wife  who 
was  mistress  of  the  house.  When,  however, 
the  ancient  simplicity  degenerated  into  luxu- 
riousness,  and  from  the  heathen  and  their 
sensual    orgies   associated   with    idol    worship 


COMPARED    WITH  PRINCESSES.  23  I 

lewdness  increased  among  the  Israelites,  wo- 
men were  multiplied  in  the  household  in  mere 
wantonness  of  lust  or  ambition.  Polygamy 
crept  in  and  sought  for  recognition  and  even 
institution,  and  a  new  word  was  necessary. 
That  word  is  pilegesh,  unknown  in  the  an- 
cient Semitic  languages,  and  borrowed  from 
some  Indo- Germanic  people,  probably  the 
Greeks,  through  the  Phoenicians,  who  traded 
in  slave  girls.  The  original  Sanskrit  root-word, 
pallavaka,  means  a  girl,  and  underlies  the 
Latin /r//r,r,  and  Gro-ok  pallakis. 

This  history  of  the  Hebrews,  as  reflected  in 
speech,  is  substantially  the  same  in  all  those 
nations  which,  emerging  from  primitive  sim- 
plicity, when  offenses  against  the  laws  of  pu- 
rity were  summarily  dealt  with,  passed  into  the 
stage  of  sensual  luxury.  With  the  degrada- 
tion of  morals  went  the  disease  and  decay  of 
language,  the  words  of  grand  simplicity  being 
degraded,  and  the  terms  for  abominable  per- 
sons and  things  made  euphemistic.  Between 
the  history  of  Japan,  especially,  and  of  Israel, 
this  correspondence  as  to  words  and  facts, 
language  and  history,  is  very  close. 

In  the  later  Hebrew  of  Daniel,  these  brevet- 
wives,  holding  but  a  fraction  of  their  lord's 
affections,  are  called  by  a  name  meaning  "  she 
that    amuses,"  "  singing    girl,"   or  "  sporting 


232  STUDIES  AND    COMMENTS. 

one."  It  was  Solomon,  however,  who  first 
began  the  assembling  of  these  idle  people  in 
large  numbers,  for  his  own  selfish  ambition 
and  gratification,  at  the  public  expense.  The 
poet  in  the  Canticle  represents  him  even  boast- 
ing of  the  great  harem  which  he  had  collected, 
and  numbering  his  sinful  possessions.  In  this 
poetical  book  the  smaller  number,  as  compared 
with  the  figures  in  the  historical  records,  seems 
at  first  rather  to  his  credit.  The  "maidens 
without  number "  show,  on  the  other  hand, 
that  there  is  hardly  ground  even  for  a  discrep- 
ancy, or  copyist's  mistake,  in  favor  of  the 
royal  sinner. 

Solomon  again  appears  at  verse  4,  chapter 
vi.,  and  begins  his  advances  in  the  following 
address.  He  has  heard  that  the  Shulamite  is 
the  only  daughter  of  her  mother,  and  that  the 
women  of  the  harem  have,  in  talking  about  her, 
praised  her  highly.  They  not  only  commend 
her  character,  but  they  wonder  who  she  can  be 
who  is  compared  to  sun  and  moon,  terrible 
even  to  Solomon  the  emperor.  The  king's 
words  now  show  far  more  respect  and  real  ad- 
miration than  before,  for  he  sees  in  this  pure- 
minded  Hebrew  girl  something  quite  different 
from  the  frivolous  beauties  of  the  harem. 

"  Thou  art  fair,  my  dear,  as  Tirzah,  comely  as 
Jerusalem,  terrible  as  bannered  hosts.     Turn  away 


COMPARED    WITH  PRINCESSES.         233 

thine  eyes  from  me,  they  have  taken  me  by  storm. 
Thy  tresses  are  as  flocks  of  goats  descending 
Gilead,  thy  teeth  as  a  flock  of  ewes  that  come  up 
from  the  washing,  each  the  mother  of  twins  and 
not  one  of  them  sterile.  Like  a  sHce  of  pome- 
granate, are  thy  cheeks  from  behind  thy  veil." 

With  repetition  of  the  same  flatteries  which 
he  has  used  before,  but  with  a  notable  differ- 
ence, and  with  an  abrupt  change  that  is  sug- 
gestive, the  king  again  makes  approaches,  but 
with  manifestly  little  success.  He  begins  a 
set  speech,  which  puts  in  comparison  the  pic- 
turesque city  of  Tirzah  with  the  grand  metrop- 
olis of  Jerusalem.  Does  not  the  poet  represent 
the  royal  suitor  as  influenced  suddenly  by  the 
flashing  eyes  of  the  unyielding  beauty,  which 
apparently  so  disconcert  him  that  he  falls 
into  repeating  his  former  compliments .''  Yet 
is  not  this  the  effect  upon  a  man  who,  it  may 
be,  even  against  his  will  and  expectation,  has 
found  arising  in  himself,  instead  of  a  playful 
mood,  a  sincere  feeling  of  regard  }  If  Solo- 
mon, in  place  of  a  frivolous  idling  away  of 
spare  moments  in  the  empty  flatteries  and 
erotic  diversions  by  which  he  had  led  captive 
hundreds  of  silly  women,  now  found  that  he 
himself  was  moved  with  new  feelings,  would 
not  his  speech  betray  his  changed  emotion  ? 
Indeed,  does  not  the  genius  of  Hebrew  poetry 


234  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

require  this  ?  Certainly  it  is  very  noticeable 
that  this  address,  in  its  abruptness  and  sudden 
changes  of  thought,  differs  vastly  from  the 
almost  perfect  poem  (chapter  iv.  1-5,  7),  in 
which  his  former  praises  were  wrought  in 
.  superb  literary  proportion  and  in  unbroken 
and  progressive  ideas.  In  this  one  scene, 
devoted  entirely  to  the  king's  unsuccessful 
love-making,  we  gather  that  the  Shulamite  is 
less  approachable  than  before,  and  the  royal 
suitor  is  utterly  disconcerted.  He  no  longer 
draws  comparison  with  the  inanimate  things 
of  architecture,  or  with  the  pretty  doves,  snow- 
white  sheep,  and  glistening  goats  of  Gilead, 
but  lifts  his  ideas  and  raises  his  standard  even 
so  high  as  to  set  this  rustic  maiden  above  the 
ladies  of  the  palace, — yes,  even  above  the 
princesses.  They  are  a  mass,  a  crowd  ;  she 
is  one  and  perfect.     Hear  him  : 

"  There  are  threescore  queens,  fourscore  concu- 
bines {pileges/i-ifn)  and  young  maidens  without  num- 
ber. My  dove  is  my  only  one,  my  undefiled,  the 
delight  of  her  mother,  the  choice  of  the  one  who 
bore  her.  The  daughters  saw  her  and  blessed  her; 
the  queens  and  the  concubines  (^pilegesh-im)  and 
they  praised  her." 

Since  the  Canticle  contains  many  allusions 
to  the  book  of  Genesis,  it  may  be  that  here 
the  poet  had  in  his  mind's  eye  the  expression 


COMPARED    WITH  PRINCESSES.         235 

of  Leah  (xxx.  13),  "  Happy  am  I,  for  the 
daughters  will  call  me  blessed  ;  "  and  of  this 
ancient  womanly  song  of  triumph,  the  refer- 
ence of  Solomon  is  an  echo ;  while  of  this 
again,  that  of  Proverbs  xxxi.  28  is  a  prolonga- 
tion of  the  same  strain  of  praise  to  her  who 
remains  content  with  the  chief  treasures  of 
woman's  estate  —  purity  in  single,  and  mother- 
hood in  married  life.  Most  naturally  the  wis- 
dom-literature of  the  Hebrews,  transcending 
the  narrow  limits  of  Israel,  takes  hold  on  ab- 
stract, that  is,  universal  truth,  with  all  that 
belongs  to  humanity.  It  refers  in  retrospec- 
tive glance  even  to  time  when  the  very  name 
of  Hebrew  was  not  even  so  much  as  "a  geo- 
graphical abstraction."  Before  Israel  was,  the 
human  heart  is. 


ACT  IV.  SCENE  III. 

THE  DANCE  OF  MAHANAIM. 

Chapter  VII.   10-13. 

Three  times  has  the  sovereign  of  the  He- 
brew empire  made  love  to  his  subject,  the 
maid  of  Galilee.  In  three  separate  forms  of 
address  has  the  wooing  been  done,  —  once  in 
the  chat  of  informal  conversation,  once  with 
elaborate  sonnet  in  which  the  graces  of  speech 
were  presented  in  fascinating  forms,  again  in 
language  fair  but  broken,  —  that  reflect  the 
changing  emotion  of  the  speaker.  Yet  the 
girl  who  has  left  her  heart  behind  her,  in  keep- 
ing of  her  lover  who  feeds  his  flock  among 
the  lilies,  gives  no  sign  of  swerving  from  her 
beloved. 

That  the  other  women  should  either  jeal- 
ously inquire  about,  or  admiringly  praise,  the 
new-comer,  the  meadow  wild  flower,  does  but 
fire  Solomon's  desire  to  possess  her  to  adorn 
his  garden  of  beauty.  Her  charms  and  graces 
and  love-sickness,  and,  above  all,  her  obstinate 
refusal  to  be  satisfied  with  harem  life,  her  flat 
rejection  of  the  king,  have  made  her  the  talk 


THE  DANCE  OF  MA  HAN  AIM.  237 

of  the  harem.     It  is  the  ladies  of  the  court 
who  ask, 

"  Who  is  she,  what  is  she,  that  looketh  forth  as 
the  dawn,  fair  as  die  moon,  clear  as  the  sun,  this 
one  as  terrible  as  an  army  with  banners  ?  " 

Or,  in  the  rendering  of  a  modern  translator, 

"  Who  is  this  with  glances  like  the  dawn, 
Fair  as  the  silver  moon. 
Bright  as  the  noontide  fire. 
Inspiring  terror  like  the  bannered  host  ?  " 

The  Shulamite  answers  the  questions  of  the 
ladies  by  narrating  her  experience  when,  as  a 
modest  young  girl,  she  was  brought  uninten- 
tionally into  the  very  presence  of  royalty.  She 
did  not  seek  the  notoriety  which  has  been 
thrust  upon  her,  but  encountered  it  unexpect- 
edly in  the  ordinary  line  of  duty  and  expe- 
rience. 

"To  the  nut  gardens,  I  went  down  to  look  at  the 
shrubs  of  the  valley,  to  see  whether  the  vines  bud- 
ded, or  the  pomegranates  bloomed. 

"Then,  before  ever  I  was  aware,  this  desire  of 
mine  brought  me  into  the  chariots  of  my  princely 
people  "  [AminadabJ. 

Here  in  this  almond-garden,  while  the  beau- 
tiful maiden  found  something  that  changed 
her  environment  and  made  her  immortal  in 
poetry,  the  student  finds  a  nut  which  no  one 


238  STUDIES  AND    COMMENTS. 

has  sitisfactorily  cracked.  There  is  evidently 
rich  meat  in  the  kernel  when  once  obtained. 
The  Hebrew  text  reads  Ammi-nadib,  which  is 
most  probably  a  proper  name.  The  Septua- 
gint  and  Vulgate  versions  read  Aminadab, 
which  is  a  common  noun  of  multitude.  Does 
the  passage  mean  that  this  chance  impulse 
of  the  maiden  was  the  means  of  placing  her  in 
the  chariot  by  which  she  was  brought  to  the 
royal  harem  .''  Was  she  kidnapped  ?  Let  us 
see. 

In  the  Hebrew  expression,  "my  soul  made 
me  chariots  of  Ammi-Nadib,"  there  may  be  a 
possible  reference  to  the  king's  charioteer, 
perhaps  the  Jehu  of  his  time.  In  the  version 
of  161 1,  the  rendering  is  "My  soul  made  me 
like  the  chariots  of  Ammi-nadib."  In  the  ver- 
sion of  1884,  it  is  "  My  soul  set  me  among  the 
chariots  of  my  princely  people."  The  theory 
of  a  proper  name  has  been  adopted  in  the  one 
case,  and  that  of  a  common  noun  in  the  other. 
What  can  be  said  on  both  sides  of  the  ques- 
tion } 

In  Exodus  vi.  23,  Ammi-Nadab  is  a  man's 
name,  meaning  "one  of  the  people"  (of  the 
prince).  In  2  Samuel  vi.  3,  Abinadab,  whose 
name  means  a  "princely"  or  "royal  father," 
was  the  keeper  of  the  ark  of  God,  which  was 
put  in  the  new  chariot  or  cart  driven  by  his 


THE  DANCE   OF  MAHANAIM.  239 

sons  to  Zion  in  Jerusalem.  Is  the  allusion 
here  to  Solomon,  as  the  "princely  father"  of 
Israel,  and  to  his  chariots  that  were  to  move  to 
Zion  and  Jerusalem  with  their  new  freight  — 
the  Shulamite  ? 

Or  is  the  contrary  the  idea  intended,  that, 
as  if  in  the  swift  chariots  of  Ammi-Nadib,  the 
thoughts  of  the  young  girl  were  in  an  instant 
swiftly  transported  to  her  home,  so  that  she 
turned  to  flee  ? 

May  it  not  be  possible  that  the  word  orig- 
inally written  by  the  poet  here  was  Ahinadab, 
the  name  of  Solomon's  commissary  officer  at 
Mahanaim  (i  Kings  iv.  14),  and  that  on  this 
particular  journey  of  the  king  and  court  he 
had  charge  of  the  transport  and  commissariat 
of  the  whole  party  ?  Ahinadab  may  have  been 
a  skilled  and  swift  charioteer.  His  name 
means  "noble  brother,"  and  a  slight  change  of 
stroke  in  the  second  Hebrew  letter  would 
make  either  reading.  It  is  remarkable  that 
both  the  Septuagint  and  the  Vulgate  spell 
the  name  with  one  m. 

In  the  joy  of  her  young  heart,  this  lovely 
country  girl  in  the  valley  of  Jezreel  has 
thrown  aside  her  veil,  and  is  singing  and  dan- 
cing in  innocent  glee,  rejoicing  in  her  own 
opening  life,  the  joy  of  new-found  love,  and 
the   freshness    of    springtime.      Solomon,   ac- 


240  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

companied  by  his  court,  is  making  a  pleasure 
excursion  in  the  northern  part  of  his  kingdom 
—  a  land  rich  in  vineyards  and  pastoral  scen- 
ery. The  noble  lords  of  the  court  are  lost  in 
admiration  of  this  fair  creature  dancing  in  the 
nut-gardens  with  joy.  The  girl,  hitherto  uncon- 
scious of  their  presence,  soon  comes  near  the 
road,  and  is  startled  at  beholding  the  splendid 
array  of  palanquins,  horses,  and  chariots.  She 
shrinks  back  shyly  from  the  knightly  riders  in 
the  cavalcade  and  turns  to  run  away.  The 
people  in  the  royal  train,  possibly  the  king 
himself,  at  once  cry  out : 

"  Return,  return, 
O  Shulamite  ! 
Return,  return, 
That  we  may  look  upon  you." 

Coyly  the  maiden  approaches  and  asks, 

"  What  do  you  see  in  the  Shulamite  ?  " 

Full  of  admiration,  the  courtiers  answer  in 
chorus : 

*'  As  it  were,  the  dance  of  Mahanaim  "  [double 
choirs]. 

.  Here,  again,  a  difficulty  arises  in  translation 
of  the  proper  name  Mahanaim,  but  the  case  is 
of  extreme  interest.  The  Revision  of  1884, 
changing  the  text  of  1611,  prints  the  word 
untranslated.      Herein  also  is  illustrated  the 


THE  DANCE  OF  MA  HAN  AIM.  24 1 

truth  that,  to  the  reverent  and  critical  students 
of  every  generation  who  study  the  Bible  afresh, 
new  beauties  become  visible  like  new  stars  and 
constellations  which  appear  in  the  sky.  Yet 
the  stars  are  not  new-born,  they  have  always 
been  there,  unseen  or  unnoticed.  We  may 
see  how  fresh  scrutiny  revealed  a  forgotten 
historical  allusion  and  a  poetical  antithesis  in 
the  name  Tirzah  contrasted  with  Jerusalem. 
So,  too,  it  is  doubtful  whether  the  earlier  trans- 
lators caught  the  delicate  allusion  in  the  reply 
of  the  ladies  to  the  Shulamite's  question.  Our 
old  version,  following  the  Septuagint  and  Vul- 
gate, says,  What  will  ye  see  in  the  Shulamite } 
As  it  were,  the  company  of  two  armies  (the 
margin  giving  Mahanaim). 

The  Revision  translates,  putting  the  two 
sentences  below  in  the  mouth  of  the  young 
girl,  — 

"  Why  will  ye  look  upon  the  Shulamite, 
As  upon  the  dance  of  Mahanaim  ?  " 

We  prefer  here  to  read  not  only  the  ques- 
tion of  the  maiden,  but  also  the  answer  of  a 
chorus  requesting  her  to  repeat,  in  the  palace, 
before  their  eyes,  what  the  courtiers  in  the 
cavalcade  had  seen  in  the  northern  valley. 

Here  again  a  proper  name,  the  name  of  a 
place  famous  by  old    and  sacred  associations, 


242  STUDIES  AND    COMMENTS. 

was  forgotten,  or  passed  over,  until  Luther 
and  the  Reformers  saw  the  point. 

The  reference  points  to  the  second  vision  of 
angels  which  Jacob  saw  east  of  the  Jordan, 
after  leaving  Mizpah.  He  named  the  place 
Mahanaim,  which  means  two  camps,  or  two 
hosts,  or  armies,  —  the  one  earthly,  his  own 
household  and  following,  and  the  other  the 
heavenly  host  of  throbbing,  singing,  happy 
angels. 

So  here,  the  courtiers  of  Solomon,  looking 
upon  this  living  tableau  of  maidenly  loveliness, 
declare  that  the  young  girl's  airy,  fairy  motions 
remind  them  of  Jacob's  celestial  visitants. 
The  sight  of  her  is  that  of  angelic  beauty  and 
heavenly  winsomencss,  recalling  the  ascend- 
ing and  descending  of  the  angels  upon  the 
ladder  or  stairs  from  earth  to  heaven. 

The  full  import  of  these  words  of  the  dance 
or  graceful  motion,  as  of  angels,  was  first  dis- 
cerned by  Ewald,  the  great  German  scholar, 
who  has  unraveled  so  many  knotty  passages 
in  the  Old  Testament,  though  Luther  first 
caught  the  idea  that  the  proper  name  of  Maha- 
naim should  be  in  the  text  and  not  the  mar- 
gin, and  so  inserted  it  in  the  page  of  the  Ger- 
man Bible.  To  this  one  of  several  reminis- 
cences of  ideas  or  events  in  the  book  of 
Genesis,  and  not  to  the  "hanging  dance"  of 


THE  DANCE   OF  MAHANAIM.  243 

the  Syrian  peasantry,  made  by  double  rows  of 
youths  and  maidens,  described  by  Wetstein,  we 
believe  the  reference  in  the  Canticle  to  be 
made.  Still,  it  is  possible  that  the  name  of  the 
dance  refers  only  and  immediately  to  the  fes- 
tive celebrations  which  the  court  people  and 
the  king  may  have  witnessed  only  a  few  days 
before  at  the  chariot-town  east  of  the  Jordan, 
of  which  Ahinadab  was  overseer. 

Charmed  with  her  modest  description  of  that 
episode  in  her  life  which  brought  her  near 
royalty,  the  court  ladies  insist  upon  her  dan- 
cing before  them,  in  the  manner  of  the  dance 
of  Mahanairn.  The  verses  following  at  the 
beginning  of  chapter  vii.  show  that  she  yielded 
to  their  request,  for  these  words  are  the  de- 
scription of  an  active  dancer,  and  the  praise 
is  that  of  a  woman  by  women. 

The  copious  vocabulary  in  Hebrew  for  the 
variety  of  dances  mentioned  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, and  the  many  references  to  this  mode  of 
showing  delight,  of  celebrating  great  national 
events,  or  of  worshiping  God,  show  that  the 
chosen  people  of  Jehovah  made  their  religion 
a  part  of  common  life,  and  mingled  joyousness 
with  worship.  Services  commemorating  great 
deliverances  of  Providence,  miraculous  events, 
famous  visions  or  theophanies,  were  held  at  the 
various    sacred    places.      These    places    were 


244  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

quite  numerous  before  worship  was  centralized 
at  Jerusalem.  Dances  were  a  regular  part  of 
these  popular  memorial  celebrations,  and  the 
vision  of  angels  seen  by  Jacob  at  Mahanaim 
was  doubtless  commemorated  by  the  people  of 
this  famous  town,  Mahanaim,  and  by  the  in- 
habitants of  the  adjacent  region,  who  were  ac- 
customed to  visit  the  holy  place.  The  idea 
and  purpose  of  the  dance  may  have  been  to 
represent  the  ascending  and  descending  of  the 
angels  upon  the  ladder,  or  rocky  stairs,  leading 
up  to  heaven.  The  Hebrew  word  mecJiolaJi, 
which  the  Shulamite  here  uses,  is  the  term  for 
a  religious  dance,  and  is  the  same  as  that  which 
describes  the  holy  and  patriotic  rejoicings  of 
Miriam  (Ex.  xv.  20),  and  of  the  maidens  who 
met  Jephthah  (Judg.  xi.  34),  and  David  (i  Sam. 
xxi.  II),  as  well  as  those  of  Shiloh  whom  the 
men  of  Benjamin  (Judg.  xxi.  21)  caught  to 
make  wives  of.  The  dancing  of  the  maidens 
at  the  popular  festival  at  Shiloh  was  i)robably 
in  idea,  if  not  in  technical  method,  the  same  as 
the  dances  at  Mahanaim.  It  may  be  remem- 
bered that  Elisha  (i  Kings  xix.  16)  was  born 
at  a  place  meaning  "  The  Meadow  of  Dancing." 
To  gratify  the  ladies  of  the  court,  and  per- 
haps to  forget  her  own  present  sorrows  by 
throwing  herself  heart  and  soul  into  the  past, 
the  young  girl  begins  the  meclwlaJi,  or  dance. 


THE  DANCE   OF  MAHANAIM.  245 

From  the  compliments  and  exclamations  of 
the  admiring  ladies  the  poet  composes  another 
of  those  glowing  descriptions  of  the  human  fig- 
ure which  form  so  notable  a  feature  of  the 
Song  of  Songs,  and  indeed  of  the  poetical 
books  of  the  Bible.  Beginning  most  fitly  with 
the  feet,  and  mounting  to  the  luxuriant  tresses, 
the  women  praise  her,  calling  her  "  the  daugh- 
ter of  nadib"  or  nobleness ;  or  "  princely 
daughter."  It  is  probable  that  the  poet  here 
represents  not  the  voice  of  one,  but  the  excla- 
mations, the  enthusiastic  cries,  of  many  de- 
lighted spectators  ;  and  that  the  first  part  of 
verse  second  turns  from  the  person  of  the 
dancer  to  the  elegance  of  her  art. 

"  How  graceful  are  thy  steppings  in  thy  sandals, 
O  noble  daughter  !  " 

"  The  curves  of  thy  thighs  are  like  circlets  of 
gold,  the  work  of  a  master's  hand  !  " 

"Thy  round  dancings  are  perfect  circles  !  " 

"  Let  not  variations  be  wanting: !  " 

"Thy  body  is  like  a  sheaf  of  wheat  garlanded 
with  lilies ! " 

"  Thy  bosom  is  like  two  fawns,  twins  of  a  ga- 
zelle !  " 

"  Thy  neck  is  like  an  ivory  tower  !  " 

"  Thine  eyes  are  as  the  pools  in  Heshbon,  by  the 
gate  of  Bath-rabbim  !  " 

"Thy  nose  is  as  the  tower  of  Lebanon,  facing 
Damascus  ! " 


246  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

"  Thine  head  upon  thee  is  like  Carmel,  and  the 
tresses  of  thy  head  like  dark  purple  !  " 

"  In  the  ringlets  thereof,  even  a  king  is  held  cap- 
tive !  " 

"  How  fair  and  pleasant  art  thou  called  '  love  * 
for  delights !  " 

"  This  thy  figure  is  like  that  of  a  palm,  and  thy 
bosom  is  like  its  clusters  !  " 

Here  ends  the  description,  for  a  new  voice 
and  presence  unexpectedly  break  upon  the 
scene.  From  the  tints  spread  on  Nature's  pal- 
ette, wheat-yellow  and  lily-white  ;  from  things 
striking  and  graceful  in  art,  architecture,  and 
household  adornment  ;  the  artificial  splendors 
of  parks,  gardens,  villas,  and  fortresses  ;  the 
face  and  figure,  the  color  and  expression,  the 
lovely  charms  of  the  rustic  dancer  are  por- 
trayed, as  she  snatches  many  a  grace  beyond 
the  reach  of  the  harem's  art,  and  seems  to  the 
gazers  incarnate  poetry. 

The  change  of  words  from  those  in  the  ordi- 
nary versions  of  the  Hebrew  of  verse  second, 
which  our  readers  will  notice,  making  the  ref- 
erence to  motion  instead  of  to  nature's  scar 
left  on  the  body  at  birth,  is,  we  think,  fully 
justifiable.  It  was  first  proposed  by  Daland. 
The  reasons  for  the  change  are,  first,  that  the 
word  "  navel "  is  never  used  in  the  ]3ible  in 
connection  with  beauty,  or  as  an  object  of  ad- 


THE  DANCE   OF  MAHANAIM.  247 

miration  ;  second,  that  it  seems  useless,  dispro- 
portional,  and  an  unusual  repetition  in  so  short 
a  passage,  to  praise  first  the  depression  in  the 
waist,  and  then  the  waist  itself,  there  being  no 
parallelism  in  this  purely  descriptive  portion  of 
the  poem  ;  third,  it  seems  to  break  the  harmony 
and  progress  of  the  poetic  inventory  of  attrac- 
tions ;  fourth,  the  Hebrew  word  here  used  is 
the  active  participle  of  the  verb  shorar,  mean- 
ing to  turn  round,  to  move  in  a  circle,  and  this 
is  the  only  one  in  the  Bible  which  contains  this 
particular  grammatical  form  ;  the  other  places, 
Prov.  iii.  8,  Job  xl.  16,  and  Ezek.  xvi.  4,  having 
different  forms,  though  from  the  same  root, 
as  even  the  English  reader  may  see  in  Young's 
Concordance  ;  fifth,  the  word  translated  "  gob- 
let "  is  derived  from  a  root  meaning  circular 
treading  with  the  feet,  and  the  term  "perfect 
circles,"  or  "  cup-round  figures,"  seems  here 
most  appropriate ;  sixth,  the  word  translated 
"mingled  wine,"  or  "  liquor,"  means  mixture, 
and,  applied  to  the  dance,  would  mean  varia- 
tions, even  as  we  read  in  musical  notation  the 
phrase  "add  mixtures;"  seventh,  the  sense, 
modesty,  and  form  of  this  English  rendering 
seem  to  be  more  in  accord  with  the  general 
idea  of  the  poem,  which  is  chastely  pure  in 
word  and  delicate  in  idea  throughout. 


ACT  IV.    SCENE   IV. 
THE    IMPREGNABLE    FORTRESS. 

Chapter  VIL  8-VlII.  4. 

Does  the  poet  represent  the  king  present 
as  an  unsuspected  and  unseen  looker-on,  who 
from  behind  column,  screen,  or  tapestry  has 
enjoyed  the  spectacle  of  the  dance  of  Maha- 
naim  ^ 

However  this  may  be,  we  find  him  at  verses 
eighth  and  ninth  addressing  the  fair  one  named 
"  love,"  who  has  so  pleased  the  women  of  the 
harem.  Is  the  strong  king,  who  is  not  accus- 
tomed to  be  crossed  in  his  purposes,  now  about 
to  crush  the  obstinacy  of  his  humble  subject, 
and  make  her  know  her  place,  —  the  place  of 
passive  obedience  .'*  Such  a  doctrine  was 
taught  even  to  people  of  the  Germanic  race  in 
Great  Britain  two  centuries  ago.  Does  the 
wooer  here  become  the  sovereign  }  Hear  Sol- 
omon's ultimatum  : 

"I  said,  'I  will  climb  up  into  the  palm  tree,  I 
will  take  hold  of  its  branches  :  may  thy  bosom  be 
unto  me  as  clusters  of  the  vine,  and  the  fragrance 
of  thy  breath  as  apples,  and  thy  mouth  as  the  best 
wine.'" 


THE  IMPREGNABLE  FORTRESS.  249 

The  king  would  say  more,  but  is  here  inter- 
rupted by  the  maiden,  who  gives  him  to  under- 
stand that  her  charms  are  for  her  beloved  only, 
and  that  for  him  are  her  favors  reserved.  In 
this,  her  sharpest  conflict  with  the  royal 
tempter,  she  is  still  unswervingly  true  to  her 
absent  lover.  No  sooner  does  the  word  tob 
(best)  leave  Solomon's  lips,  than  the  maiden 
interrupts  him  to  reply  : 

"  Flowing  properly  [only]  for  my  beloved,  caus- 
ing slumbering  lips  to  move.  I  am  my  beloved's, 
and  to  me  is  his  desire." 

In  addition  to  the  reasons  before  given  for 
seeing  at  this  point  an  interruption,  and  a 
change  of  speaker,  we  may  add  that  the  origi- 
nal word  here  translated  "  properly "  and  by 
the  revisers  of  1884  "smoothly,"  or  in  the  mar- 
gin "  aright,"  is  the  same  as  in  chapter  i.  4, 
"rightly,"  or  "in  uprightness."  In  several 
other  places,  as  in  Isaiah  xxvi.  7  and  xxxiii.  15, 
in  which  the  word  occurs,  the  root  idea  is  that 
of  righteousness,  propriety.  The  manifest  im- 
port of  the  words  here  put  by  the  poet  into 
the  Shulamite's  mouth  is  that  her  kisses  and 
caresses,  even  though  a  king  not  only  desires 
but  compares  them  to  his  best  wine,  belong 
rightly  only  to  her  betrothed  lover.  No  open 
"  door  "  free  to   suitors,  even  though   royal,  is 


250  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

she,  but  a  "  wall,"  resisting  all  improper  ad- 
vances. The  charms  of  this  virgin  reared  in 
a  pure  Israelite  home  are  as  "  towers,"  impreg- 
nable to  the  strongest  assaults  of  the  tempter. 
She  herself  is  an  invincible  fortress. 

Kisses  and  caresses  are  among  the  good  gifts 
of  God  rightly  to  be  used,  and  not  abused  unto 
sin.  The  wine  of  love  "  causes  even  slumber- 
ing lips  to  move,"  and  after  separation  from 
her  beloved,  even  in  the  hours  of  sleep,  the 
raptures  of  love's  communion  are  enjoyed  again 
in  dream,  and  the  parted  lips  move  with  audi- 
ble question  and  response.  In  slumbering  or 
in  waking  hours,  the  lover  remembers  his  be- 
loved ;  and  his  soliloquies  are  of  her  "  who 
dwelleth  in  the  gardens."  Love  invades  all 
states  of  body  and  mind  with  welcomed  des- 
potism. 

In  this,  the  Shulamite's  firm  declaration,  is 
again  the  keynote  to  victory,  for  the  religion  of 
Jehovah,  which  the  king  with  all  his  errors  has 
not  renounced,  forbids  him  to  use  force  against 
a  woman.  Here  we  behold  the  better  nature 
of  Solomon.  The  nobler  side  of  his  character 
comes  into  view  when  we  find  that  he  honors 
and  admires  the  steadfast  resistance  to  all  his 
flatteries  and  blandishments.  Magnanimously 
he,  though  a  king,  confesses  himself  a  rejected 
suitor  and  lets  her  go  free.     The  lion  will  not 


THE  IMPREGNABLE  FORTRESS.         25  I 

rend  the  lamb,  the  eagle  does  not  tear  the  dove. 
Unlike  many  a  baffled  suitor  of  our  day,  who  by 
murder  or  slander  wreaks  revenge  upon  the 
woman  who  has  declined  his  addresses,  or  un- 
like Henry  VIII.,  who  sent  his  wives  to  the  axe 
and  block,  the  Hebrew  king  does  the  Shulamite 
no  harm  in  body  or  in  character,  orders  her 
not  to  sword,  dungeon,  or  disgrace,  but  mag- 
nanimously gives  her  to  freedom  and  home,  to 
lover  and  marriage.  He  who  sent  his  political 
enemies  to  death  yet  spared  this  girl. 

Resuming  the  thread  of  our  narrative  and 
the  plot  of  the  poem,  we  find  the  Shulamite 
has  not  yet  started  for  home.  She  is  still  in 
the  palace  in  Jerusalem,  but  indulging  in  the 
thought  that  she  is  already  free.  She  antici- 
pates in  day-dream  that  meeting  with  her  be- 
trothed which  is  so  soon  to  be.  Solomon, 
great-hearted  even  in  his  disappointment,  will 
send  her  back  to  her  northern  home,  even  as 
he  lately  took  her  away.  This  is  what  she  will 
say  to  her  lover  when  she  meets  him  safe  at 
home,  on  the  dear  old  doorstep  once  again  : 

"  Come,  my  beloved,  let  us  go  forth  into  the 
fields,  let  us  lodge  under  the  cypress  boughs.  Let 
us  start  early  for  the  vineyards,  to  see  whether  the 
vine  has  sprouted,  or  its  blossoms  opened,  or  the 
pomegranates  budded.  There  will  I  give  thee  my 
love.     The  love-apples  smell  sweet,  and  over  our 


252  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

cotta2:e-door  srow  all  sorts  of  excellent  fruits,  new 
as  well  as  old,  which,  my  beloved,  I  have  reserved 
for  thee." 

Then  follows  the  joyful  innocent  outburst  of 
a  guileless  child,  to  whom,  though  she  be  a 
maiden  grown,  a  lover  is  but  a  good  brother. 
An  angel  might  envy  such  artless  love  dwelling 
in  a  human  heart.  To  the  pure,  that  is  pure 
which  another  judges  vilely  of.  One  line  of 
difference  ever  dividing  good  and  bad  men  is 
this, — their  belief  or  unbelief  in  the  absolute 
guilelessness  of  natural  maidenhood.  As  pure 
as  a  sister's  affection  for  her  brother,  or  as  a 
mother's  for  her  babe,  is  this  transparent  rap- 
ture of  a  crystal  heart  when  she  cries  : 

"  O  that  thou  wert  as  my  brother  that  sucked  the 
breasts  of  my  mother.  Should  I  find  thee  without 
the  door,  I  then  would  kiss  thee  and  no  one  would 
condemn  me.  I  would  lead  thee  and  bring  thee  into 
my  mother's  house,  and  thou  shouldst  be  my 
teacher  and  I  should  cause  thee  to  drink  the  spiced 
wine  of  my  pomegranate  juice." 

"Ah,  yes,"  she  would  say,  "if  you  were  only 
my  brother,  I  could  do  this  and  none  would 
be  shocked  or  scandalized  at  it.  Not  yet  can 
this  be  ;  but  some  time  by  marriage  we  shall 
be  one,  and  the  pleasures  of  constant  compan- 
ionship will  be  ours." 


THE  IMPREGNABLE  FORTRESS.  253 

Yet,  in  imagination,  she  continues  : 

"  His  left  hand  should  be  under  my  head,  and 
his  right  hand  should  embrace  me." 

Then  for  the  last  time  she  adjures  the  palace 
ladies,  and  this  time  her  formula  of  importu- 
nity is  abbreviated  ;  but  there  is  added  a  new 
element  of  earnestness,  and  the  refrain  takes 
the  form  of  an  emphatic  question  which  means 
exultation  and  victory. 

"  I  adjure  you,  O  daughters  of  Jerusalem,  for 
why  should  ye  rouse  or  excite  love  till  it  please  ?" 

Why  is  the  formula  of  adjuration  here  abbre- 
viated, and  with  no  mention  of  the  "  roes  and 
hinds  of  the  field  "  ?  Is  it  a  sign  of  her  haste, 
and  desire  at  once  to  leave  the  palace,  shake 
off  the  dust  of  Jerusalem,  and  be  off  to  her 
mountain  home  ? 

Or  is  it  because  the  whole  question  of  artifi- 
cially excited  love  is  safely  past,  and  pure  spon- 
taneous love  is  now  in  view  ascain  ? 

Or  does  the  poet  mean  that  that  part  of 
passion  which  is  of  the  flesh,  which  man  shares 
with  the  brutes  of  the  field,  must  be  forgotten 
in  the  holy  friendship  of  souls  united  in  di- 
vinely ordained  wedlock  ?  Certainly  the  omis- 
sion of  the  one  reference,  and  the  reinforce- 
ment of  the  other,  at  this  point,  are  equally 
remarkable,  adding  another  to  the  distinctly 
dramatic  features  of  the  poem. 


254  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

Shall  we  say  that  now  for  the  first  time  the 
Shulamite  begins  to  catch  a  gleam  of  the 
truth  which  the  inspired  poet  is  teaching  all 
readers  of  his  song  ?  That  she  is  now  mount- 
ing to  the  clear  vision  that  will  enable  her  to 
say  "  Love  is  a  fire  of  Jah  "  ? 

Some  students  of  this  biblical  drama  would 
have  us  believe  that  the  constructive  art  of  the 
Hebrew  author  is  so  crude  that  at  the  close  of 
each  act  he  anticipates  the  conclusion.  This 
we  do  not  believe,  but  rather  that  by  her  trials 
she  learns  to  walk  with  God,  and  that  He 
walks  with  her  as  He  did  with  his  tried  ser- 
vant Job.  No  more  making  adjuration  by  her 
earthly  pets,  or  admired  creatures  of  freedom, 
she  now  refers  the  burden  of  her  thoughts  and 
feelings  to  the  Holy  One.  As  the  intent  of 
the  author  of  the  Book  of  Job  is  to  conduct 
his  hero  through  earthly  calamities,  through 
the  utmost  temptations  of  Satan,  through  all 
clouds  and  darkness  of  the  flesh  and  the 
spirit,  through  the  mist  and  twilight  of  human 
philosophy,  that  he  may  bring  him  to  God  and 
see  his  hero  even  more  than  a  Jacob  made 
Israel,  so,  through  all  that  most  tries  a  woman, 
the  singer  of  the  Song  of  Songs  would  bring 
the  Shulamite  where  she  may  look  up  into  the 
face  of  her  Heavenly  Father. 

May  not  this  emancipated  one  have  sung 
words  like  these  .' 


THE  IMPREGNABLE  FORTRESS.         2$$ 

"  Sing  unto  God,  sing  praises  to  his  name :  extol 
him  that  rideth  upon  the  heavens  by  his  name 
JAH,  and  rejoice  before  him." 

"  God  setteth  the  solitary  in  families  :  he  bring- 
eth  out  those  which  are  bound  with  chains :  but  the 
rebellious  dwell  in  a  dry  land." 


ACT  V.  SCENE  I. 
THE  UNION  OF  THE  LOVERS. 

Chapter  VIII.  5-7. 

Twice  from  the  persons  of  the  drama  does 
the  question  arise,  "  Who  is  this  that  cometh 
up  out  of  the  wilderness  ?  "  In  the  first  in- 
stance, the  exclamations  of  wonder  are  com- 
pelled from  the  lips  of  citizens  of  Jerusalem 
by  the  gorgeous  train  of  King  Solomon,  and 
his  state  palanquin  surrounded  by  the  famous 
veterans  of  the  wars  of  David,  Then  it  was 
the  stately  approach,  amid  clouds  of  incense, 
of  one  who  expected  to  win  with  a  word.  The 
outlook  was  from  Jerusalem,  the  occasion  one 
of  the  public  pageants  usual  upon  the  appear- 
ance in  state  of  Solomon,  —  such,  for  instance, 
as  on  the  occasion  of  his  marriage  with  Pha- 
raoh's daughter,  or  his  return  from  a  pleasure 
or  hunting  tour,  or  his  entrance  into  the  city 
with  the  idea  of  adding  another  star  of  beauty 
to.  the  galaxy  of  his  harem. 

Now,  the  question  is  again  asked,  as  in 
other  scenes  of  the  drama,  but  this  time  the 


THE    UNION  OF  THE  LOVERS.  2 $7 

scenery  is  unmistakably  Galilean.  It  is  in 
the  north,  in  Shunem.  The  spectators  are 
shepherds  or  toilers  of  the  vineyard  on  the 
fields  looking  southward  over  the  wilderness 
or  plain  of  Jezreel.  These  companions  of 
"  the  beloved  "  of  the  poem  descry  not  a  glit- 
tering cavalcade,  nor  clouds  of  dust  amid 
which  flash  spear  and  scimiter,  gold  and  silver, 
but  the  prominent  figures  are  a  young  man 
and  a  young  woman.  She  leans  upon  him  for 
strength,  for  the  journey  has  been  long.  It 
is  the  Shulamite  girl  freed  from  her  captivity 
in  Jerusalem.  Perhaps  her  mother  has  come 
also  to  meet  her  daughter. 

Eagerly  the  happy  girl,  returning  from  exile 
in  a  strange  city,  surveys  the  old  familiar  spots, 
dear  to  her  from  childhood.  She  recognizes 
the  orchards,  in  which  every  tree  has  its  asso- 
ciations. The  first  place  most  redolent  of 
sweet  associations  is  the  witnessing  tree  under 
which  his  heart  was  first  captivated  by  her 
beauty,  and  under  which  they  plighted  their 
troth.  Most  sacred  of  all  spots  on  earth  to 
true  lovers  is  that  one  which  heard  the  propo- 
sal, which  became  the  dawn  of  love's  long  day. 
They  who,  under  the  leafy  boughs  of  the  old 
home's  fragrant  orchard,  or  aisle  of  evergreens 
in  college  campus,  or  in  the  forest,  or  by  the 
river  side,  sealed  love's  compact,  have  sweeter 


258  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

associations  with  Nature  than  they  whose 
words  of  love  are  spoken  in  parlor  or  drawing- 
room. 

Did  the  Hebrew  lovers  of  twenty-five  cen- 
turies ago  carve  sign  or  symbol  on  wood  or 
bark,  or  simply  invoke  the  tree  to  be  their  wit- 
ness ?  To  these  people,  who  called  a  spring 
of  water  "  the  eye  "  of  the  landscape,  and  in 
unconscious  natural  poetry  gave  to  a  river 
"tongue,"  "lips,"  and  "mouth;"  to  a  moun- 
tain "head,"  "nose,"  "ears,"  "shoulder," 
"side,"  "back,"  "ribs,"  "loins,"  and  "elbow," 
a  tree  was  even  more  of  a  living  thing. 

In  their  parables,  fables,  and  allegories,  in- 
stead of  the  animals  that  talk  to  us  and 
instruct  us  in  ^sop,  the  trees  stan>d  as  sym- 
bols of  God's  law  in  Eden,  hold  a  convention 
to  decide  upon  having  a  king,  and  become  the 
emblem  of  the  man  who  meditates  on  God's 
law.  In  Bible  language  the  trees  "  know," 
they  "rejoice,"  they  "clap  their  hands,"  they 
"  faint,"  they  are  "  the  Lord's."  They  become 
places  of  dwelling  and  of  judgment,  not  only 
landmarks,  but  underneath  them  birth  and 
death,  love-pledge  and  legal  covenant,  and  all 
the  events  of  life  and  love  take  place. 

Upon  the  apple-tree  the  Shulamite  casts 
her  eyes  in  welcome  and  delight,  as  memory 
recalls  the  happy  past. 


THE    UNION  OF  THE  LOVERS.  259 

"  Under  this  apple-tree  I  wakened  thy  love  "  [I 
won  thy  heart]. 

"There  [as  she  passes  her  lover's  home  and 
birthplace,  says  she]  thy  mother  was  in  travail 
with  thee,  there  in  travail  she  brought  thee  forth." 

The  final  scene  is  introduced  by  verse  six. 
It  is  the  wedding.  The  Shulamite,  safe  in  the 
arms  of  him  to  whom  her  heart  has  been 
given,  having  come  out  of  temptation  un- 
scathed, stands  before  the  marriage  altar  and 
plights  her  troth.  Jehovah  has  given  her  a 
crown  for  ashes,  the  oil  of  joy  for  mourning, 
and  the  garment  of  praise  for  the  spirit  of 
heaviness.  She  takes  the  nuptial  vow  and 
utters  the  prayer  and  sentiment  which  to- 
gether make  the  keynote  of  the  poem,  —  the 
unconquerable  nature  and  lofty  inflexibility  of 
true  love,  —  bidding  him  cherish  her  as  one 
who  has  been  tried  to  the  uttermost  and  not 
found  wanting. 

That  keynote  and  final  strain  of  triumph 
thus  sounds  : 

"  Set  me  as  a  seal  upon  thy  heart,  as  a  signet 
upon  thine  arm  ;  for  love  is  as  strong  as  death, 
jealous  love  is  as  unyielding  as  Slieol,  its  flashings 
are  flashes  of  fire,  the  flames  of  Jah," 

No  mere  Hebrew  superlative  is  this  "  very 
flame  of  the  Lord,"  —  as  the   Revision  trans- 


26o  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

lates  this  culminating  word  sJialhebetJi-Jah. 
Set  at  this  dramatic  climax  of  the  drama,  it 
can  mean  nothing  less  than  a  reference  of  the 
theme  of  the  poet,  and  the  subject  of  the 
drama,  to  Jah  Jehovah,  whose  glorious  name 
we  read  in  the  margin  of  Isaiah  xii.  2,  xxvi.  4. 
This  name  of  God,  used  only  in  poetry,  is  here 
set  at  the  culmination  of  the  poem  of  poems 
most  felicitously  and  appropriately. 

This  is  the  divine  side  of  love ;  it  has  also 
a  human  side.  The  image  and  superscription 
are  of  Jehovah,  the  worth  of  stamp  and  legend 
must  be  tested  in  human  experience.  As  she 
remembers  the  deep  waters  of  trial  and  the 
bribes  of  a  king  she  adds  : 

"  Many  waters  cannot  quench  love,  neither  can 
the  floods  drown  it.  If  a  man  were  to  give  all  the 
substance  of  his  house  in  place  of  love,  it  would 
utterly  be  contemned." 

The  commentary  and  explanation  of  these 
glowing  sentiments,  we  have  had  in  the  whole 
poem  itself. 

That  the  maiden  of  Shunem  or  the  poet  of 
the  Canticle  had  reached  the  heights  of  the 
truth  revealed  in  the  Scriptures  of  the  New 
Covenant,  which  the  allegorists  seem  to  assume, 
we  do  not  believe.  The  full  corn  in  the  ear 
does  not  come  before  the  tender  blade.    "  That 


THE    UNION  OF  THE  LOVERS.  26 1 

is  not  first  which  is  spiritual,  but  that  which 
is  natural."  Not  in  this  poem  do  we  reach  the 
spiritual  heights  marked  by  the  Christian's 
word  agape,  in  which  glows  both  God's  love 
and  man's,  which  is  deeper  than  sex  and  as 
high  as  heaven  ;  but  here  in  the  Canticle  is 
the  foregleam  of  the  glory  revealed  in  Christ. 
Is  there  not  inspiration  in  a  book  which  gives 
to  a  woman,  first  in  the  Old  Scriptures,  to 
prophesy  that  love  is  of  God  .-* 

Man  by  his  reasoning  powers  reaches, 
woman  by  her  feelings  first  discovers,  truth. 
Man's  mental  attitude  and  method  can  never 
be  just  the  same  as  woman's,  yet  the  Lord 
gives  her  too  his  word  to  publish.  Truth  is 
not  always  revealed  to  him  who  gazes  only  in 
one  direction.  In  the  story  told  by  Herod- 
otus, when  all  looked  to  the  East  because  the 
oracles  had  promised  the  sceptre  and  kingship 
to  whoever  should  first  see  the  rays  of  the 
morning  sun,  one  gazer  "looked  at  the  op- 
posite side  of  the  heavens  ;  and  while  his  com- 
petitors had  still  before  them  nothing  but  a 
sky  yet  buried  in  the  shades  of  night,  he  saw 
at  the  West  the  gleam  of  dawn  that  had  al- 
ready whitened  the  summit  of  a  tower." 

This  one  book  of  the  Old  Testament  seems 
as  unique  and  strange  as  the  man  of  Herodotus' 
story,  who  to  see  the  rising  sun's  rays  looked 


262  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

westward.  The  Shulamite,  gazing  at  the  tower 
of  her  own  experience,  saw  first  thereon  a 
truth,  to  be  fully  revealed  in  the  day  of  Christ. 
It  is  noticeable  also  that  when  the  Greeks  of 
Alexandria,  long  afterwards,  and  much  nearer 
the  true  Messiah's  time,  turned  this  marvelous 
poem  into  prose,  they  expressed  the  term  for 
love  which  the  Hebrew  poet  chose  for  use  in 
the  refrain  by  the  purely  biblical  and  sacred 
coinage  of  thought,  —  agape.  The  choice  of 
this  precious  word,  so  often  on  the  lips  and  pens 
of  Paul,  John,  Peter,  and  Jude,  and  doubtless  of 
the  Son  of  Man,  shows  how  the  seventy  trans- 
lators of  Alexandria  regarded  the  idea  of  love 
as  treated  in  the  Canticle.  Here,  first,  as  Pro- 
fessor Thayer  shows,  and  occurring  in  no 
classic  Greek  author,  the  word  agape  made  its 
appearance  as  a  current  term  in  this  glorious 
world-language,  which,  with  all  its  verbal  riches, 
had  known  only  those  inferior  terms  for  love 
in  which  fleshly  enjoyment  was  the  basic  idea. 
De  Quincey  remarks  that  "  The  act  of  trans- 
lating .  .  .  out  of  a  mysterious  cipher  .  .  . 
into  the  golden  light  of  a  language  the  most 
beautiful,  the  most  honored  among  men,  and 
the  most  widely  diffused  through  a  thousand 
years  to  come,  had  the  immeasurable  effect  of 
throwing  into  the  great  crucible  of  human 
speculation,  even  then  beginning  to  ferment, 


THE   UNION  OF  THE  LOVERS.  263 

to  boil,  to  overflow,  —  that  mightiest  of  all  ele- 
ments for  exalting  the  chemistry  of  philoso- 
phy, —  grand  and,  for  the  first  time,  adequate 
conceptions  of  the  Deity."  Without  the  elo- 
quence of  the  wizard  of  English  style,  we  utter 
our  belief  that  this  Song  of  Songs,  in  which 
it  is  shown,  through  a  woman,  that  the  foun- 
tain of  love  is  in  God,  bore  a  noble  part  in 
preparing  the  world  for  the  ideas  dominant  in 
Christianity. 


ACT  V.     SCENE   11. 
THE    VIRGIN    FORTRESS    AND    THE    VINEYARDS. 

Chapter  VIII.  8-14. 

After  her  passionate  appeal  and  apostrophe 
to  love,  the  happy  bride  turns  to  the  shepherd- 
bridegroom  and  the  assembled  company,  and 
entertains  them  with  a  witty  speech,  in  which 
she  recalls  a  promise  made  to  her  by  her  older 
brothers  ;  or,  possibly,  a  conversation  overheard 
by  her  when  she  was  an  undeveloped  girl. 
She  then  gives  them  a  little  parable  about  Sol- 
omon, in  a  genuine  womanly  way,  and  in  true 
Oriental  style. 

We  must  remember  that,  in  describing  her- 
self to  the  ladies  of  Jerusalem,  in  the  sixth 
verse  of  the  first  chapter,  she  apologized  be- 
cause her  complexion  was  so  dark  and  sun- 
burned, explaining  it  by  the  fact  that  she  had 
been  sent  to  work  in  the  vineyards  by  the  sons 
of  her  mother,  that  is,  her  brothers.  Presum- 
ably, her  dear  father  was  dead,  and  the  chil- 
dren of  a  former  marriage,  her  step-brothers, 
were  not   kind  to  their  step-sister.     We   also 


VIRGIM  FORTRESS  AND    VINEYARDS.     265 

heard  their  commands  when  they  perhaps  pre- 
vented a  meeting  of-  the  lovers,  and  bade  her 
go  to  work  and  catch  the  little  foxes.  To  her 
mother  the  Shulamite  was  devoted,  and  having 
few  or  no  young  girl  friends  or  brothers  to 
sympathize  with  her,  she  made  her  mother,  as 
we  have  seen,  the  repository  of  all  her  joys 
and  sorrov/s.  Indeed,  this  tender  affection  of 
the  daughter  to  the  mother,  both  in  dreams 
and  in  waking  hours,  is  one  of  the  striking 
characteristics  of  the  heroine,  and  forms  a 
marked  feature  of  the  cantata,  so  that  the 
most  ordinary  reader  easily  detects  it.  The 
mother  doubtless  reciprocated  the  child's  af- 
fection, but  the  sons  were  severe  and  magis- 
terial in  their  notions. 

Although  the  Hebrews  paid  more  regard  to 
women  than  many  Asiatic  peoples,  yet  the  po- 
sition of  an  unmarried  female,  and  especially  of 
a  step-daughter,  even  in  an  Israelite's  family, 
was  not,  from  our  view,  a  desirable  one.  As 
matter  of  fact  the  step-brothers  were  severe 
with  her,  and  like  many  other  owners  of  vine- 
yards who  harvest  the  revenues,  but  let  their 
hired  men  do  the  hard  work,  the  brothers 
made  the  step-sister  keep  the  vineyards,  hoe 
and  plant,  trim  and  pick,  and  drive  out  the 
foxes  ;  so  that,  as  she  said  figuratively,  "  mine 
own  vineyard  "  —  that  is,  her  personal  appear- 


266  STUDIES  AND   C0MMEN7S. 

ance  —  "I  have  not  kept."     "Cultivating  for 
my  brothers,  I  have  not  cultivated  myself." 

It  is  probable  that  these  step-brothers  were 
in  reality  harsher  in  the  treatment  of  their  little 
sister  than  they  knew  or  intended  to  be.  They 
did  not  mean  to  make  her  miserable,  but  if  she 
was  to  be  happy,  it  was  to  be  in  their  way. 
Perhaps  they  belonged  to  that  class  of  persons, 
not  so  very  rare,  to  whom  adheres  the  infirmity 
of  wanting  every  one  to  be  and  think  and  act 
after  their  notions.  Many  a  really  kind,  good, 
well-meaning  older  brother  will  make  his 
young  sister  perfectly  miserable,  while  at  the 
same  time  meaning  to  make  her  happy.  He 
will  even  cheerfully  sacrifice  himself  to  make 
her  wretched,  while  thinking  to  make  her 
happy  in  Ins  way. 

What  a  mistake  we  make  when  trying  to  ar- 
range the  happiness  of  other  people  on  our 
own  cast-iron  plans,  and  how  unchristian  to  re- 
fuse our  help  to  others,  who  decline  to  alter 
their  whole  life  course  in  order  to  run  on  our 
gauge ! 

The  "little  sister"  is  the  Shulamite,  and 
one  day,  when  not  yet  in  her  teens,  she  over- 
hears their  plans  when  they  are  talking  about 
her.  Her  words,  now  addressed  on  her  wed- 
ding day  to  her  friends,  are  a  playful  reminis- 
cence of  what  she  once  heard  long  ago.  One 
brother  talks  in  this  strain  ; 


VIRGIN  FORTRESS  AND    VINEYARDS.     267 

"We  have  a  sister,  she  is  little.  She  is  not 
grown,  not  developed.  She  is  not  a  young  lady 
yet.  What  shall  we  do.?  [not,  what  shall  she  do, 
but  what  shall  we  do]  in  the  day  when  she  shall 
be  spoken  for — when  young  men  seek  her  com- 
pany, when  lovers  come  for  her  hand  and  heart, 
when  she  is  to  enter  society  ?  " 

A  second  brother  answers,  with  apparent 
severity,  but  with  real  generosity  and  justice  : 

"If  she  be  a  wall,"  resisting  all  improper  ad- 
vances, keeping  maidenly  dignity,  defying  by 
the  strength  of  firm  principle  and  chaste  in- 
stinct all  improper  familiarities,  "  then  we  shall 
build  upon  her  a  palace  of  silver." 

"  Upon  a  foundation  of  such  a  character,"  he 
would  say,  "  we  shall  erect  the  superstructure 
of  our  regard,  and  an  honorable  marriage,  giv- 
ing our  approval  to  her  choice,  welcoming  her 
betrothed  as  a  brother,  showering  our  presents, 
and  dividing  our  hereditary  substance  gener- 
ously for  her  dowry." 

A  third  brother  cautiously  and  justly,  but 
still  severely,  continues : 

"But  if  she  be  as  a  door,"  — open  to  every 
one's  flirtations,  and  accessible  to  miscella- 
neous attentions,  and  to  every  lover  professing 
so  to  be,  —  "  then  we  shall  fence  her  with  ce- 
dar boards  ; "  that  is,  marry  her  to  a  hard 
crusty  man,  who  will  allow  her  no  company. 


268  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

and  permit  no  lightness  or  folly;  or,  "we 
shall  sell  her  into  a  harem."  Withdrawn  from 
all  society  she  will  be  buried  in  a  life  of  mo- 
notony with  her  m.aster. 

However  we  may  criticise  the  selfish  form  of 
their  deliberations,  we  must  admire  their  de- 
cisions. 

Triumphantly,  now,  the  maiden,  no  longer  a 
little  undeveloped  girl,  but  a  woman  grown, 
and  who  doubtless  profited  by  overhearing  her 
brothers'  wise  severity,  cries  out : 

"  I  have  been  a  wall,  and  my  bosom  is  as  the 
tower  upon  it.  I  have  withstood  the  flatteries  and 
blandishments,  even  of  a  king.  Armed  only  with 
innocence,  I  have  resisted  every  assault." 

"Then,"  after  thus  refusing  to  yield  to  Sol- 
omon, "  was  I  in  his  eyes  as  one  that  found 
peace." 

Ay,  as  in  Chinese  history  the  defeated  con- 
queror, leaving  behind  the  victorious  Corean 
fortress,  against  which  he  had  hurled  his  ar- 
mies in  vain,  sent  rolls  of  costly  silk  to  the  de- 
fenders as  token  of  his  admiration  ;  as  the  hill 
tribes  of  India,  issuing  from  their  strongholds, 
tied  a  red  cord  round  the  wrists  of  the  de- 
feated British  soldiers  lying  dead  on  the  field, 
to  show  that  they  regarded  them  as  heroes  ;  as 
the  caps  of  the  Russian  officers  were  lifted  in 


VIRGIN  FORTRESS  AND    VINEYARDS.    269 

admiration  when  the  Turkish  leader  at  Shipka 
Pass,  wounded  and  a  prisoner,  entered  their 
camp ;  as  every  Union  soldier  honored  the 
courage  of  the  beaten  Confederates,  so  in  Sol- 
omon's admiring  eyes  was  this  pure  girl  as  one 
who  found  peace,  never  more  to  be  molested 
even  by  a  king.  Thus  by  the  valor  of  purity, 
this  virgin  fortress,  this  unsoiled  lily,  obtained 
that  the  king  should  leave  her  at  peace.  Tran- 
quilly, happily,  she  left  Jerusalem  and  came  to 
her  humble  home  at  Shunem,  with  the  joy  of  a 
good  conscience  and  a  heart  at  peace. 

"  Solomon,"  further  speaks  the  happy  bride, 
in  one  of  those  riddles  or  enigmas  in  which  the 
Hebrews  delighted,  from  the  time  of  Samson  to 
that  of  Solomon,  "  had  a  vineyard  at  Baal- 
hamon "  (or  is  it  Baal-'Hermon  .?).  "  He  let 
out  the  vineyard  on  shares  to  farmers,"  and  so 
rich  was  the  crop,  so  valuable  the  stock,  that 
"every  one  for  selling  the  crop  must  pay  rent 
in  a  thousand  pieces  of  silver." 

"  O  Solomon,  keep  thy  thousand  shekels,  and 
give  two  hundred  to  the  keepers  of  the  fruit." 
Let  him  and  them  keep  their  wealth,  "my 
vineyard,  my  own,  is  before  me."  I  own  my- 
self. What  I  had,  my  beauty  and  my  purity, 
the  king,  with  all  his  vineyards,  could  not 
buy. 

No  longer  made  the  keeper  for  others,  she 


270  STUDIES  AND    COMMENTS. 

dwells  in  the  gardens  of  requited  love  and  de- 
sired affections. 

Now,  for  the  first  time  in  the  drama,  the  be- 
loved comes  publicly  upon  the  scene  and  his 
own  voice  is  directly  heard.  Heretofore  he 
has  been  addressed,  described,  remembered, 
dreamed  about,  made  participant  in  the  scenes 
of  thought  and  imagination,  but  so  far  has  had, 
to  the  reader  of  this  grand  love  poem,  only  sub- 
jective existence  in  the  pure  mind  of  the 
maiden.  Now,  as  lover  crowned  and  happy 
husband,  he  appears  on  the  scene  in  objective 
reality.  Yet  even  then,  all  his  thoughts  are 
directed  towards  his  bride.  In  her  shadow  he 
lives,  and  appearing  only  for  a  moment  van- 
ishes upon  the  mountains  of  spices. 

"  O  thou  that  dwellest  in  the  gardens,  the  com- 
panions are  listening  to  thy  voice,  let  me  also  hear 
it." 

He  asks  here  for  more  than  the  song  which 
she  has  been  singing  for  the  festal  wedding 
company.  He  craves,  now  that  she  is  with  him, 
a  sweet  word  that  assures  him  that  her  whole 
love  and  heart  are  forever  his. 

Will  she  yield  too  easily,  even  to  the  one 
whom  her  soul  loveth  .'  A  sweet  innocent  co- 
quettishness  is  a  maidenly  charm.  A  modest 
winsomeness,  tempered  with  just  enough  spirit 


VIRGIN  FORTRESS  AND    VINEYARDS.     27 1 

to  moderate  the  woulcl-be  victor's  conceit,  is 
better  for  both  lover  and  maid.  We  cannot 
conceive  even  of  Eve  engaging  too  readily  to 
become  Adam's  wife,  nor  Rebecca  becoming 
Isaac's  bride  without  giving  him  something  to 
wonder  about.  No  man  can  utterly  fathom  a 
woman's  ways.  It  is  good  that  he  cannot. 
Take  away  all  mystery,  eliminate  every  ele- 
ment of  unexpectedness  from  a  woman,  you 
make  her  a  machine  which  none  but  a  wooden 
man  loves.  The  very  impossibility  of  a  man 
finding  out  all  about  a  woman  is  one  of  the  in- 
gredients in  that  *'  charm  which  Eden  never 
lost."  Even  an  old,  settled-down  husband 
ought  to  enjoy  being  occasionally  "carried  up 
to  Paradise  by  the  stairways  of  surprise," 
through  the  element  of  woman's  unexpected- 
ness. And  so,  at  the  end  of  the  Canticle, 
though  the  bride  yields  to  this,  the  first  com- 
mand, rather  request,  of  her  beloved,  we  note 
in  her  what  Milton  pictures  in  our  first  mother 
Eve  : 

"  Implied 
Subjection,  but  required  with  gentle  sway 
And  by  her  yielded,  by  him  best  received, 
Yielded  with  coy  submission,  modest  pride, 
And  sweet,  reluctant,  amorous  delay." 

Truly  a  wanton  flirt  is  a  wicked  woman  ;  a 
jilt  is  the  devil's  own  daughter.  A  creature 
who   encourages   attentions  capriciously,    and 


272  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

gives  her  lovers  hopes  only  to  deceive  and  dis- 
appoint, belongs  to  the  company  of  Delilah, 
Jezebel,  and  Sapphira,  and  will  be  judged  of 
God.  Naught  of  this  spirit  belongs  to  the 
Shulamite.  Here  is  a  woman  who  has  refused 
to  encourage  one  whom  she  cannot  love,  yet 
mildly  teases  the  one  who  has  won  her. 
Steadfast  and  true  to  one  only,  she  is  yet  of 
womankind,  and  her  words  have  the  flavor  of 
bitter-sweet.  Here  in  the  very  hour  appar- 
ently of  his  triumph  she  tells  him  to  flee,  to 
hasten  to  the  mount,  to  "  break  away." 

"  Make  haste,  my  beloved,  and  be  thou  like  a  ga- 
zelle or  a  young  hart  upon  the  spicy  mountains." 

Does  she  mean  to  say,  "No  longer  are  we  di- 
vided by  the  mount  of  separation,  not  now  with 
their  valleys  that  keep  us  far  apart,  not  as 
when  a  prisoner  in  Jerusalem  I  looked  upon 
the  range  upon  range  of  dividing  hills,  home, 
heart,  love-sick,  but  be  thou  upon  the  moun- 
tain of  spices.  Enjoy  thou  thy  life  henceforth 
in  the  fragrance  of  my  love.  I  am  your  gar- 
den "  > 

Does  she  mean  this .-'  Shall  we  leave  the 
lovers  happy  in  the  joy  of  their  union,  in  the 
fond  faith  and  rapture  of  hope  that  reality  will 
be  equal  to  anticipation  } 

Or  will  love,  that  came  "  with  music  in  his 


VIRGIN  FORTRESS  AND    VINEYARDS.     2/3 

feet,"  and  tuned  "young  pulses  to  his  rounde- 
lay," not  "turn  proser  when  he  comes  and 
stays  "  ? 

What  does  it  mean,  that,  in  the  supreme 
moment  of  happy  love,  this  Shulamite  —  the 
most  womanly  to  our  thinking  of  all  the 
women  of  the  Bible  —  answers  her  beloved  in 
language  which  cannot  possibly  mean  "  come," 
but  which  unmistakably  says  "  flee  "  ? 

Who  can  tell  ?  What  commentator  explain  ? 
Does  not  the  poet  intend  here  an  enigma  ? 
Does  not  even  inspiration  picture  the  course 
of  true  love  as  never  running  smooth,  and  hint- 
ing that  whether  affectionate  courtship  be  with 
ease  or  with  stress,  its  forecast,  however  bright, 
may  fail  of  its  fulfillment  in  happy  marriage  ? 
Does  it  not  compel  the  searching  of  heart 
which  asks  whether  the  elements  of  love-mak- 
ing are  the  same  as  those  of  a  true  marriage  ? 
Must  not  one,  even  on  attaining  the  heart's  im- 
mediate desire,  mount  even  yet  higher  the 
mountains  of  fragrant  endeavor  ? 

Do  not  these  last  words  of  the  poet,  put  in 
the  mouth  of  the  Shulamite,  propound  the 
possibility  that  winning  a  maiden  to  marriage 
is  not  the  end  of  either  right  ambition  or  holy 
guile  in  holding  and  developing  that  love  which 
is  a  spark  of  the  Eternal?  Docs  it  not  suggest 
that  the  mountains  of  spices  have  yet  greater 


274  STUDIES  AND   COMMENTS. 

heights  to  be  won,  even  until  passionate  love 
be  transformed  into  purest  friendship,  when 
sex  and  its  charms  are  lost  in  the  heavenly- 
glories  of  spiritual  love  ?  And  thus,  abruptly 
closing,  does  not  this  loftiest  strain  of  Hebrew 
poetry  teach  that  earthly  love,  though  of  the 
purest,  cannot  satisfy  the  soul,  and  that  noth- 
ing can  do  this  but  God  ? 

These  questions  may  be  answered  us  in  eter- 
nity, when  in  the  presence  of  the  Lover  of 
man  we  shall  see  our  Beloved  as  He  is,  and 
find  in  our  Christ  the  eternal  satisfaction  of 
the  soul. 


"JAH    JEHOVAH    IS    MY   STRENGTH    AND  MY  SONG; 
AND    HE   IS   BECOME    MY   SALVATION." 


"TRUST    YE   IN    JEHOVAH    FOREVER,   FOR    IN   JAH 
JEHOVAH    IS   THE    ROCK   OF   AGES." 


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